Plenary,
Meeting date: Thursday, May 6, 2004
Official Report
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Point of Order
We have a point of order from Mr Aitken.
Presiding Officer, I have a point of order, about which I gave you prior notice.
Members will shortly make a determination on motion S2M-1095, in the name of Malcolm Chisholm, that the National Health Service Reform (Scotland) Bill be passed. However, this morning at 11.29, before the motion to pass the bill was even debated, the Scottish Executive issued a press release, with the heading, "passing of reform bill signals a new era".
The press release states:
"The path was cleared today for radical health service modernisation as the NHS Reform (Scotland) Bill was passed by the Scottish Parliament."
The point to be determined by you, Presiding Officer, is whether this gross insult to the Parliament, which clearly anticipates the result of a vote, is something much more sinister. Was this an attempt by the Executive to railroad the Parliament, particularly many of the Executive's own back benchers, into approving the bill? Those back benchers expressed concerns in this morning's debate on the bill about certain aspects of it. If it is an attempt to railroad such members, it is clearly a tactic that the Executive should not be allowed to get away with. I ask you to rule that the premature issue of that press release is contrary to the interests of the Parliament.
Normally, I am all for proactivity in the media and on websites, but you are quite right to say that a bill is not passed until Parliament has so willed at decision time, which will take place shortly. I am sure that the word will be passed on to those responsible.