Parliamentary Standards Bill

I start by saying that I recognise the concerns expressed by my noble friend. In fact, those are concerns that we have recently had to grapple with in this House in many ways. Perhaps one day we should reflect on them further in this House. As we said several times in debate on Tuesday, we must make sure that MPs are treated fairly under the Bill. The noble Lord's amendment is aimed at addressing the issue of whether it is right that an MP should be under investigation through two different channels in relation to the same facts at the same time. I remind the Committee that as a result of the government amendments to Clauses 6 and 7, IPSA will no longer have the power to recommend any sanction to the House nor to issue a direction to an MP to take any remedial action. The findings of an investigation by the commissioner will be referred to the Committee for Standards and Privileges, unless an agreement on remedial action has already been reached with the MP. Any action taken as a result of the referral will be a matter for the committee to recommend to the House. It is not completely clear from the text of the amendment whether an investigation means one carried out by the new Commissioner for Parliamentary Investigation, as created by the Bill, or by the Committee on Standards and Privileges. I also point out that it may be possible, for example, for both the police and the commissioner to be investigating the same behaviour without the other being aware of it. This might particularly be the case with the commissioner, who may not know that information has been passed to the police. If the amendment is referring to investigations by the commissioner, it will be for IPSA to determine the rules which govern investigations carried out by the commissioner. It is possible that IPSA or the commissioner may wish to establish a protocol or memorandum of understanding with the police and prosecuting authorities concerning investigations that run in parallel with criminal investigations. That is how the present system works. There is a protocol between the parliamentary commissioner for standards, the Committee on Standards and Privileges and the Metropolitan Police. I think that my noble friend was referring to that. If the amendment refers to investigations by the committee, as well as proceedings, it is surely for the other place to decide the protocols that govern the working of its committees, and that is not a matter for your Lordships’ House. I imagine that those in the other place would be very surprised if we sought to insert provisions instructing them how they should approach their internal disciplinary proceedings. In any case, I do not think that the provision envisaged in this amendment would be appropriate. Although it is right that in most cases where the police have become involved, we might expect the Committee on Standards and Privileges to suspend its proceedings until the conclusion of the police investigation, that may not always be the case. The committee might want to require the return of money or to take some other step to restore public confidence. It should not be prevented from doing so. I am sure that we can rely on the committee to behave sensibly and to consult the police as appropriate. Accordingly, the new clause is inappropriate. It is unnecessary to ensure that there is a proper co-ordination between the commissioner, the committee and the police, and it risks dictating to the other place how it should act. That seems in itself to be an interference in the exclusive cognisance of the other place, which in other areas we have been at such pains to ensure that the Bill does not do.