Foreword
This has been the year of a new start for a new Parliament.
The general election of May 2010 brought 227 new Members to the
House of Commons to join the 423 returning Members. New Committees
of the House were established, including the Committee on Standards
and Privileges, which oversees my work and which is comprised
largely of Members new to the Committee. A new body (the Independent
Parliamentary Standards Authority) started its work of dealing
independently with Members' expenses. There is now the opportunity
for all parts of the House, returning and new Members alike, to
restore and improve the standing and reputation of Parliament,
and public confidence in its elected Members.
With my staff, I have been pleased to give all Members
such help, support and advice as we can to assist in this important
task. It is important for all Members that they should attract
the confidence of constituents in their conduct and propriety.
It is equally important that the public know that, with those
standards met, the House and its Members are able to concentrate
on the work they carry out on behalf of their constituents and
the country as a whole.
My office's particular contribution to this important
first year of the new Parliament covered three main areas.
First, I have been able to clear the complaints legacy.
I have resolved all but one of the 25 active inquiries which I
carried over from the last Parliament. The remaining inquiry was
suspended as a result of possible criminal proceedings. This completion
rate was achieved by maintaining a concentrated focus on inquiry
work. As a result, over the reporting year, I completed work on
33 inquiries, leaving just four active inquiries to be carried
over into the current year. I was pleased that the newly elected
House agreed to my proposals, supported by the Committee, for
greater openness about the initiation and resolution of my inquiries,
while maintaining the necessary degree of confidentiality while
those inquiries are under way. My parliamentary webpages now carry
information about my current caseload, and factual information
about all concluded inquiries from the last three years.
The second area of activity was my office's contribution
to the induction of Members to the House. I attach considerable
importance to all Members—and their staff—having a
proper and practical understanding of the requirements set out
in the Code of Conduct for Members of Parliament and the fuller
Guide to the Rules. As well as writing to all Members of the House,
both new and returning Members, I and the Registrar of Members'
Financial Interests gave a series of seminars to Members about
the Code and the more detailed requirements in relation to the
registration and declaration of their interests. My office continued
to give personal confidential advice to every Member who asked
for our assistance. I was pleased that we were able to produce
the first Register of Members' Financial Interests within four
months of the general election, a substantial document produced
in record time which we know is regularly accessed by constituents
and others.
The third main area was starting a review to ensure
that the standards of conduct expected of Members remained relevant
and up to date for the new Parliament. I was pleased, therefore,
to be able, with the agreement of the Committee on Standards and
Privileges, to launch my review of the Code of Conduct for Members
of Parliament in March this year. The review will also provide
an opportunity to align Parliament's responsibility for the conduct
of its Members with the different responsibilities of the Independent
Parliamentary Standards Authority for ensuring compliance with
its expenses regime. I look forward to reporting to the Committee
in 2011-12 the outcome of my review with my recommendations for
any changes to the Code.
I have been very grateful this year for the oversight
and support of the Committee. My thanks also go to the staff of
the Committee, particularly the Clerk, Mr Steve Priestley, and
the Committee Assistant, Ms Jane Cooper, both of whom retired
at the end of the reporting year. Finally, I have been very grateful
for the work of all the staff in my office, including those temporary
staff who assisted with complaints inquiries. The professionalism
and commitment which they have all brought to this work are, I
hope, clearly reflected in this report.
6 July 2011 John Lyon CB
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