CODES OF CONDUCT
Left: The Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner of Canada, Ms Mary Dawson. MPs can seek advice directly from a service directly linked to Parliament. This page: the Parliament of Canada.
and adapt the better features of code design to their own culture and practice. Codes of ethics or codes of
conduct are liable to become a dead letter (i.e. ineffectual) if they serve only as a guide to unacceptable behaviour and there are no sanctions for breaches. There are several different ways
of dealing with allegations of a breach of a code. In some instances the Presiding Officer (Speaker or President of the Chamber) has authority suspend an MP for a short period or to “name” the MP following which it is customary for a resolution to be carried to suspend the MP for one or more days. These cases usually relate to conduct during proceedings. In more serious cases of misconduct, it is common for allegations to be made to the Presiding Officer and referred to an
all-party committee (e.g.: Privileges Committee; Committee on Ethics) for investigation and report. Where sanctions are available, these systems fail if the culture of the committee or the Parliament encourages partisan considerations to prevail over applying principles of justice. Failure to apply sanctions in cases of clear breaches risks rendering a code ineffectual. Sanctions are applied by the
Parliament itself (if bicameral, the MP’s chamber) on the recommendation of the committee. The Parliament’s decision is final, due to its sovereign status. Enforcement of codes by the
Parliament is fundamental to the effectiveness of codes in ensuring that a Parliament fulfils its role within and in support of the broader democratic system. Whilst proven breaches are
infrequent, parliaments do apply sanctions where allegations have
been proven to its satisfaction. For example, U.K. MPs were suspended without pay in the “cash for questions” scandal, and a U.S. Congressman was forced to submit to a humiliating admonition in front of the House of Representatives. In a somewhat different case, the Massachusetts State House recently expelled a Member after he was jailed for six months after a criminal conviction unrelated to his role as a legislator, and so was unable to take his seat. However, sanctions are the final
resort, and apply only where all other steps to ensure ethical conduct has failed.
Protecting the parliamentary system An MP’s greatest protection against breaches is his or her ethical competence. Most are elected with considerable life-experience and well-developed understanding of
how to recognize ethical issues and resolve them. However, reports of apparent breaches demonstrate that not all do. Some Parliaments have implemented induction or professional development programmes to assist MPs develop their ethical competence. Further, a measure of ethical competence, developed by Uppsala University’s Professor Kavathatzopoulos, can be used to help MPs better understand their own capabilities. Parliaments may find it desirable to bring in specialist expertise to assist with such programmes and some may find it preferable for political groupings to provide them. Parliaments and their democratic
systems stand to deliver better outcomes for their people where each MP is supported through professional development and codes which facilitate ethical conduct by all MPs.
The Parliamentarian | 2014: Issue One | 45
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