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WQ.174/2021
WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE CHAIR OF THE PRIVILEGES AND PROCEDURES
COMMITTEE
BY SENATOR K.L. MOORE
QUESTION SUBMITTED ON MONDAY 26th APRIL 2021
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 4th MAY 2021
Question
Will the Chair advise how many complaints or reports of incidents of sexism by States Members and civil servants have been reported to and recorded by the States Greffe over the past ten years, and will she provide this information broken down to reflect separately the number of any such complaints and reports by States Members and civil servants for each year?
Answer
Incidents of sexism by States Members may be reported to the Commissioner for Standards. Prior to the creation of the role of the Commissioner in 2017 breaches of the Code of Conduct for Elected Members were reported to PPC for investigation by the Committee.
Incidents of sexism by civil servants would not normally be recorded by the Greffe: they should be raised with the relevant line manager for investigation according to HR procedures set by the States Employment Board.
Incidents investigated by the Committee: 2011 – 2017
In 2014 there was one investigation which involved an element of sexism.
Incidents investigated by the Commissioner for Standards: 2017 - 2021 The cases investigated by the Commissioner are available online here.
Incidents recorded which did not involve investigation
Members approached the Deputy Greffier in relation to three separate incidents during 2019. After discussing each individual case with the complainants, it was agreed that whilst each incident in isolation might not necessarily warrant further investigation by the Commissioner for Standards, or be something a member would wish to report in itself, a record of those incidents would be retained by the States Greffe and any further complaints could be added so that they could be assessed cumulatively in the future. No further incidents have been reported since 2019.
Future work
The Greffier of the States has had a number of conversations with States Members about sexism since his appointment in late 2015, including during the preparation of the States Assembly gender audit. The most recent meeting of the Diversity Forum included a discussion of behaviour and culture within the Assembly and steps which could be taken to secure improvements which will be taken into account in the current review of the Code of Conduct.