By Ben Kerrigan-
MPs could be banned from foreign trips or forced to undergo anger management classes under a proposed overhaul of Parliament’s sanctions regime.
The Commons Committee on Standards are introducing a wider range of penalties was required for MPs found to have broken the official code of conduct.
Breaches include misuse of office expenses and incorrectly registering financial interests.
Under the new proposals, MPs will be asked to to apologise, but can be suspended in extreme cases.The committee’s power to investigate MPs for bullying or harassment is set to be handed over to a new independent panel recently approved by MPs.
The decision to set up the panel comprising of eight members, follows a 2018 inquiry led by Dame Laura Cox into how allegations are handled.
Complaints about bullying and sexual harassment have been rife in the past few years with not many held accountable for their misdemeanours.Under the current sanctions system, set up in 1995 in the wake of the “cash for questions” scandal, the committee can order MPs to apologise or pay back money if they are found in breach of the code.
In serious cases, the committee can also ask for MPs to be suspended without pay or expelled from Parliament – although this requires approval from the Commons as a whole.
In a report, the committee said an “expanded suite of sanctions” was required to more appropriately deal with MPs who fall foul of the rules.
Labour MP Chris Bryant, who chairs the committee, said: “For too long the only sanctions available against MPs have been a slap on the wrist or suspension from the House.”
He added that an expanded range of sanctions would give MPs “a clear idea of the kind of attitudes and conduct we are trying to promote and those we wish to eliminate”.
Diversity Training
Under the new proposals, Parliament’s Standards Commissioner Kathryn Stone would get the power to force MPs to attend diversity training – or sign up to “behaviour agreements”.
She would also be able to ban MPs from official overseas trips or withdraw their membership of a select committee for up to five years.
MPs could also be banned from accessing parliamentary services such as bars and the Commons library – although MPs would have to decide the details.
The committee has also recommended the new independent panel investigating bullying allegations are given a similar range of powers.
The committee said it had made its recommendations to help the new panel to quickly decide its own sanctions framework.
The sanctions for breaking the code, and the new powers for the panel, will need to be signed off by the Commons as a whole.
‘Genuine remorse’
In an effort to make penalties fairer, the committee has also published a list of aggravating and mitigating factors to be taken into account.
Under the committee’s proposed system, a harder line could be taken with longer-serving MPs compared to their less experienced colleagues.
In circumstances excluding bullying and harassment, MPs could escape harsher sanctions if they can show they are suffering from mental health problems, or show “genuine remorse”.