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WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE CHIEF MINISTER BY DEPUTY T.M. PITMAN OF ST. HELIER
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 5th JULY 2011
Question
Following the statement on 30th March 2010 by the Minister for Home Affairs at an Education and Home Affairs scrutiny panel hearing that the Minister did not want to expand on the reasons for the delay in producing the Wiltshire report because he had given an interview to the Jersey Evening Post and, in his words, "I promised the reporter that she would have a scoop", will the Chief Minister state whether he considers this acceptable conduct by a Minister and within the requirements of the Ministerial Code of Conduct and conduct that shows a satisfactory standard of transparency and integrity?
Answer
The question wrongly implies that the Minister for Home Affairs was declining to provide the Scrutiny Panel with relevant information or refusing to answer a question. Neither of these are correct. The Scrutiny Panel hearing related to the possible appointment of the Acting Chief Officer of Police as the next Chief Officer of Police. During the hearing there was a discussion between the Chairman of the panel and the Minister in relation to delays in the disciplinary investigation conducted by the Wiltshire Police in relation to the then Chief Officer of Police. The Minister was not asked a question in relation to this but began to volunteer information. He then decided to limit the information which he would volunteer as it was not directly relevant to the matter in hand and as he had recently given an exclusive press interview which would make this detail public. The Panel appeared to be satisfied with this approach because no questions were asked on this point. All this is apparent from the transcript of 30th March 2010.
I do not, therefore, believe at all that the Minister for Home Affairs has breached the Code of Conduct for Ministers.