66. Under a Resolution of the House of 6 November 1995 the House agreed that Members should deposit certain agreements for the provision of services with the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards.

Members should:

• ensure that the agreement does not breach the ban on lobbying for reward or consideration (see paragraphs 89-101 below);
• put any such agreement in written form;
• deposit a full copy of the agreement with the Commissioner. The agreement should indicate the nature of the services to be provided and specify the fees or benefits the Member is to receive in bands of (1) up to £5,000; (2) £5,001 to £10,000 (and thereafter in bands of £5,000);
• make the appropriate entry in the Register; and
• declare the interest when it is appropriate to do so (see paragraphs 72-88).

Deposited agreements may be inspected in the Parliamentary Archives.

67. 'Services in the capacity of a Member of Parliament' is usually taken to mean advice on any parliamentary matter or services connected with any parliamentary proceeding or otherwise related to the House. Essentially, when Members are considering whether an agreement is necessary they should ask themselves 'Would I be doing this job in this way if I were not a Member of Parliament', and seek an agreement if the answer is 'No'.

68. The Select Committee on Standards in Public Life[25] gave the following guidance in respect of the application of the rule:

"The present rule is that all remunerated outside employment must be included in the Register, irrespective of whether it has any bearing on a Member's actions in Parliament. We have no doubt that this discipline should continue to be observed.

If our recommendation that paid advocacy[26] in Parliament should be prohibited altogether is adopted by the House, it is essential that no future agreements should require Members to take part in activities which can be described as advocacy.

The new requirement for employment agreements[27] to be put in writing will apply principally to any arrangement whereby a Member may offer advice about parliamentary matters. We think it right, however, that it should also include frequent, as opposed to merely occasional, commitments outside Parliament which arise directly from membership of the House. For example, a regular, paid newspaper column or television programme would have to be the subject of a written agreement, but ad hoc current affairs or news interviews or intermittent panel appearances would not.[28]

It may not always be immediately obvious whether a particular employment agreement arises directly from, or relates directly to, membership of the House. At one end of the spectrum are those Members whose outside employment pre-dates their original election, whilst at the other extreme are those who have taken up paid adviserships since entering the House. In between there will be many cases which are difficult to classify. Some Members, for example, may provide advice on Parliamentary matters incidentally as part of a much wider employment agreement covering matters wholly unrelated to the House. In these circumstances, it would be for an individual Member to decide how far it would be proper to isolate the Parliamentary services within a separate, depositable agreement; in reaching that decision he may wish to consult the Commissioner."

69. On the basis of this guidance the Committee on Standards and Privileges has agreed that disclosing the remuneration for parliamentary services separately from remuneration for other services would be justified only in exceptional circumstances; eg where the parliamentary services are separately identifiable and form only a small proportion of the services as a whole. In any such case the entry in the Register should make it clear that the remuneration is for parliamentary services as part of a wider agreement.

70. The scope of the Resolutions is not limited to employment registered under Category 2 (Remunerated employment, office, profession, etc) but includes other forms of employment, such as directorships (including non-executive directorships), when these involve the provision of services by the Member in his or her capacity as a Member of Parliament.

71. The following special provisions apply to media work (journalism, broadcasting, speaking engagements, media appearances, training, &c):

a) The deposit of an agreement for the provision of services is not required.

b) Unless the work is wholly unrelated to parliamentary affairs, such as a sports column in a newspaper, Members who register any form of media work under Category 2 (Remunerated employment, office, profession, etc.) should declare the remuneration, or value of the reward, they receive for each commitment, or group of commitments for the same organisation or audience in the same calendar year, in bands of (1) up to £5,000; (2) £5,001-£10,000 (and thereafter in bands of £5,000).

26   Referred to in the Guide as "lobbying for reward or consideration". Back

27   Referred to in the Guide as "agreements for the provision of services". Back

28   But see also paragraph 71 below. Back