APPENDIX TO THE GUIDE: RESOLUTIONS OF
THE HOUSE RELATING TO THE CONDUCT OF MEMBERS
Registration and Declaration of Members'
Interests
Resolutions of 22nd May 1974
Members' Interests (Declaration)
"In any debate or proceeding of the House or
its Committees or transactions or communications which a Member
may have with other Members or with Ministers or servants of the
Crown, he shall disclose any relevant pecuniary interest or benefit
of whatever nature, whether direct or indirect, that he may have
had, may have or may be expecting to have."
"Every Member of the House of Commons shall
furnish to a Registrar of Members' Interests such particulars
of his registrable interests as shall be required, and shall notify
to the Registrar any alterations which may occur therein, and
the Registrar shall cause these particulars to be entered in a
Register of Members' Interests which shall be available for inspection
by the public."
*
Resolution of 12th June 1975, amended
on 19th July 1995
Members' Interests (Declaration)
"For the purposes of the Resolution of the House
of 22nd May 1974 in relation to disclosure of interests in any
proceeding of the House or its Committees,
(i) any interest disclosed in a copy
of the Register of Members' Interests shall be regarded as sufficient
disclosure for the purpose of taking part in any division in the
House or in any of its Committees.
(ii) the term 'proceeding' shall be deemed
not to include the asking of a supplementary question."
*
Resolution of 12th June 1975
Members' Interests (Declaration)
"Pursuant to the Resolutions of the House of
22nd May 1974, this House agrees with the recommendations made
in the Report of the Select Committee on Members' Interests (Declaration)
relative to the arrangements for the registration of Members'
Interests, and with the recommendations contained in paragraphs
43 and 47 of that Report in relation to the declaring of such
interests; and that a Register of such interests be established
as soon as possible in accordance with the proposals made in that
Report."
Paragraph 43 of the First Report from the Select
Committee on Members' Interests (Declaration) (Session 1974-75)
HC 102; reads:—
"No difficulty should arise in any proceeding
of the House or its Committees in which the Member has an opportunity
to speak. Such proceedings, in addition to debates in the House,
includes debates in Standing Committees, the presentation of a
Public Petition, and meetings of Select Committees at which evidence
is heard. On all such occasions the Member will declare his interest
at the beginning of his remarks in exactly the same way as he
has hitherto done by convention. It will be a matter for his
judgement, if his interest is already recorded in the Register,
whether he simply draws attention to this or makes a rather fuller
disclosure."
Paragraph 47 of the same Report provides that declarations
of interest made in Select Committees shall be recorded in their
Minutes of Proceedings.
*
Resolution of 17th December 1985
Register of Members' Interests
"This House ... emphasises that it is the personal
responsibility of each Member to have regard to his public position
and the good name of Parliament in any work he undertakes or any
interests he acquires; confirms that the scope of the requirement
to register remunerated trades, professions or vocations includes
any remunerated activity in the fields of public relations and
political and parliamentary advice and consultancy; in particular
... in regard to the registration and declaring of clients that
the services which require such registration and, where appropriate,
declaration, include, as well as any action connected with any
proceedings in the House or its Committees, the sponsoring of
functions in the Palace, making representations to Ministers,
Civil Servants and other Members, accompanying delegations to
Ministers and the like ..."
[Note: This Resolution should be read in conjunction
with the Resolutions of 6th November 1995 on lobbying
(Conduct of Members) and delegations (Standards in Public Life).]
*
Resolution of 6th November 1995, amended
on …
Agreements for the Provision of Services
"(1) With effect from Wednesday 15th November
1995, any Member proposing to enter into an agreement which involves
the provision of services in his capacity as a Member of Parliament
shall conclude such an agreement only if it conforms to the Resolution
of the House of 6th November 1995 relating to Conduct of Members;
and a full copy of any such agreement including the fees or benefits
payable in bands of: up to £5,000,
£5,001-£10,000, and thereafter
in bands of £5,000, shall be deposited with the Parliamentary
Commissioner for Standards at the same time as it is registered
in the Register of Members' Interests and made available for inspection
and reproduction by the public;
(2) any Member who has an existing agreement involving
the provision of services in his capacity as a Member of Parliament
which conforms to the Resolution of the House of 6th November
1995 relating to Conduct of Members, but which is not in written
form, shall take steps to put the agreement in written form; and
no later than 31st March 1996 a full copy of any such agreement
including the fees or benefits payable in bands of: up
to £5,000, £5,001-£10,000,
and thereafter in bands of £5,000 shall be deposited with
the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards and registered in
the Register of Members' Interests and made available for inspection
and reproduction by the public; …
Provided that the requirement to deposit
a copy of an agreement with the Commissioner shall not apply —
(a) if the fees or benefits payable do
not exceed 1 per cent of the current parliamentary salary; nor
(b) in the case of media work (but in
that case the Member shall deposit a statement of the fees or
benefits payable in the bands specified above)."
*
Resolution of 13th July 1992
Members' Interests (Interests of Chairmen and members of Select
Committees)
"This House takes note of the First Report from
the Select Committee on Members' Interests, Session 1990-91 (House
of Commons Paper No. 108), relating to the interests of Chairmen
and members of Select Committees, and approves the recommendations
of the Committee relating to declaration of interest in Select
Committees (paragraphs 8 to 16), withdrawal from Committee proceedings
(paragraph 24) and procedures prior to the election of a Chairman
(paragraph 25)."
Lobbying for
Reward or Consideration
Resolution of 2nd May 1695
Against offering Bribes to Members
"The Offer of any Money, or other Advantage,
to any Member of Parliament, for the promoting of any Matter whatsoever,
depending, or to be transacted, in Parliament, is a high Crime
and Misdemeanour, and tends to the Subversion of the Constitution."
*
Resolution of 22nd June 1858
Rewards to Members
"It is contrary to the usage and derogatory
to the dignity of this House, that any of its Members should bring
forward, promote or advocate, in this House, any proceeding or
measure in which he may have acted or been concerned for or in
consideration of any pecuniary fee or reward."
*
Resolution of 15th July 1947, amended on 6th November
1995 and …
Conduct of Members
"It is inconsistent with the dignity of the
House, with the duty of a Member to his constituents, and with
the maintenance of the privilege of freedom of speech, for any
Member of this House to enter into any contractual agreement with
an outside body, controlling or limiting the Member's complete
independence and freedom of action in Parliament or stipulating
that he shall act in any way as the representative of such outside
body in regard to any matters to be transacted in Parliament;
the duty of a Member being to his constituents and to the country
as a whole, rather than to any particular section thereof and
that in particular no Member of the House shall, in consideration
of any remuneration, fee, payment, reward or benefit in kind,
direct or indirect, which the Member or any member of his or her
family has received, is receiving, or expects to receive—
(i) advocate or initiate any cause or matter
on behalf or any outside body or individual, or
(ii) urge any other Member of either House of
Parliament, including Ministers, to do so,
by means of any speech, Question, Motion, introduction
of a Bill or amendment to a Motion or Bill, or any approach,
whether oral or in writing, to Ministers or servants of the Crown."
*
Resolution of 6th November 1995
Standards in Public Life
"This House agrees with the recommendations
in the Second Report from the Select Committee on Standards in
Public Life (House of Commons Paper No. 816) relating to the cessation
of paid advocacy (paragraph 54);[34]
and further that a Member with a paid interest should not initiate
or participate in, including attendance, a delegation where the
problem affects only the body from which he has a paid interest."
Conduct
Resolution of 19th July 1995
Code of Conduct
"This House endorses the principle of a Code
of Conduct, and instructs the appropriate Select Committee to
prepare such a draft Code for approval as soon as possible, taking
into account the suggestions of the Nolan Committee and any relevant
overseas analogues; and whilst restating its commitment to the
objectives of the Resolution of the House of 15th July 1947 relating
to privileges, accepts the need to review its wording in the context
of the work to be undertaken on the draft Code."
*
Resolution of 24th July 1996
Code of Conduct
"This House approves the Third Report from the
Committee on Standards and Privileges, House of Commons Paper
No. 604, and in particular—
(a) approves the Code of Conduct prepared
pursuant to the Resolution of the House of 19th July 1995,
(b) approves the Guide to the Rules relating
to the Conduct of Members, the modifications to the rules of the
House contained therein, and the guidelines to the application
of the Resolution of the House of 6th November 1995, (Conduct
of Members) contained in paragraph 58 of the Guide, and
(c) authorises the Committee on Standards and
Privileges to make such minor amendments to the Guide to the Rules
as appear to it to be justified by experience or necessarily reflect
decisions of the House; and to report such amended versions of
the Guide to the House."
*
Resolution of …
Code of Conduct
[The text of the Resolution approving the revisions of
the Code and the Guide will be set out here]
34 "Activity constituting paid advocacy would
be outside our proposed rules and should therefore cease from
the start of the new Parliamentary session (1995-96)." Back
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