Hansard Society welcomes Eames Review Report - Oct 30, 2009

‘New Code of Conduct should help restore trust in House of Lords'

In June 2009, The Hansard Society, the UK's leading non-partisan political research and education charity, published a briefing paper Restoring Trust in the House of Lords setting out a range of measures which should be taken if trust and faith in the House of Lords is be restored. We welcome the Eames Review Report which embodies a number of these recommendations, specifically:  

• The appointment of a fully independent Commissioner for Standards to conduct investigations into all alleged misconduct by Members.
• The new proposed Code which seeks to articulate more clearly and comprehensively the general principles of conduct which should guide Members.
• That all Members should give a formal, signed undertaking to abide by the Code at the same time as taking the oath of allegiance on their introduction to the House and at the start of each new Parliament.
• Amending the wording of the Code so that it does not amount to a ‘lawyer's charter' which, contrary to the public interest, could delay inquiries into members misconduct.
• That future induction and mentoring of new Members should be improved and focus on standards and not just on political or practical matters.
• That Members of the House of Lords should be banned from accepting payment in return for providing parliamentary advice or services to outside bodies or persons.

The Hansard Society recommends further action:

• The report of the Senior Salaries Review Body inquiry into peers allowances and expenses must ensure that its recommendations are, as far as possible, in keeping with the Committee on Standards in Public Life's review of MPs' expenses with an emphasis on transparency and accountability.
• That the SSRB's recommendations on the levels of allowances and expenses must be sufficient for peers to do their work properly and not lead to a situation where only those with independent incomes can become peers.
• The office of Lord Speaker should be vested with clearer authority to pursue the programme of reform, embody and articulate the ethos of the institution and the standards of the House, and act to ensure, without fear or favour, that a new Code of Conduct is introduced and rigorously enforced.

For further information contact Virginia Gibbons at the Hansard Society on mediaprog@hansard.lse.ac.uk or 020 7438 1210 or 07812 765 552 or

Dr Ruth Fox on 07779666771

 Editors' Notes

• The Hansard Society is the UK's leading non-partisan political research and education charity which exists to strengthen parliamentary democracy and encourage greater public involvement in politics. (http://www.hansardsociety.org.uk/)
• The Briefing Paper, Restoring Trust in the House of Lords, (download the paper here) draws on some of the ideas and recommendations discussed at a seminar co-hosted with the Lord Speaker on May 20 2009, augmented by additional ideas and issues derived from Hansard Society research in recent years.