How does the Privileges and Procedures Committee work - Proceedings Code

Privileges and Procedures Committee: Proceedings

Introduction

The Privileges and Procedures Committee (PPC) is responsible for the procedures of the States Assembly, for members' facilities and the code of conduct for members.

Remits and Membership

The formal terms of reference for the PPC are set out in Standing Orders (see Appendix).

The PPC consists of the Chair and 3 elected members who are not Ministers or Assistant Ministers, 2 elected members who are Ministers or Assistant Ministers and 1 elected member who is a member of the Scrutiny Liaison Committee.

The PPC selects a Vice-Chair to fulfil the functions of the Chair in his/her absence. If the Chair and Vice-Chair are absent from a meeting, members present shall select one of their number to chair the meeting.

The quorum of the PPC is 4.

The PPC make most of their decisions by consensus without the need to vote. Where a vote is necessary, each member of the PPC has one vote. It is not possible to proceed with a decision on a tied vote.

Sub-Committees

The PPC is entitled to set up Sub-Committees to deal with and focus on particular issues.

Sub-Committees operate on behalf of the PPC. The appointment, remit and timescale must be agreed by the PPC and recorded in the Minutes.

A Sub-Committee will appoint its own Chair, who will usually be a member of the PPC. It is the responsibility of the Sub-Committee Chair to report to the PPC on a regular basis.

Unless the PPC agrees otherwise, the quorum for a Sub-Committee is one half of its members. Where this is not a whole number it should be rounded up to the nearest whole.

Any report prepared by the Sub-Committee will be presented to the States in the name of the PPC.

Role of Chair

The Chair of the PPC is appointed by the States in the manner set out in Standing Orders. The terms of office for each Chair is for the duration of the States Assembly until the beginning of the first States meeting following the next ordinary election.

The main responsibilities of the Chair are as follows:

• Implement the remit of the PPC as established by Standing Orders

• Provide direction and leadership to the PPC and act as a figurehead for its work

• Work closely with colleagues and the Greffier, Deputy Greffier, Assistant Greffier (Chamber and Members' Support) and the Committee and Panel Officer to establish clear working practices to help the PPC to perform its function.

• Upon election to the position, identify and propose colleagues for appointment as PPC members.

• Sign PPC minutes upon their approval by the PPC

• Within the Chamber:

• Make Statements on matters of official responsibility
• Answer written/oral questions directed to the PPC
• Table written/oral questions directed to relevant Ministers
• Propose the arrangement of public business for future meetings

PPC Meetings

The PPC will agree for each calendar year a schedule of regular meetings which will be held to plan and consider the progress of work being undertaken and any other matters arising. When this schedule has been agreed, it will be published on the States Assembly website.

PPC meetings will commonly be held in the either the Le Capelain or Blampied rooms. The PPC may also hold meetings by email or other appropriate electronic means.

Meetings of the PPC are generally held in private to enable open and frank discussions on procedural and administrative matters, and to consider draft documentation. However, minutes will be published on the States Assembly website of all PPC meetings, subject to applicable exemptions of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 and relevant data protection legislation.

There will be agendas for all scheduled PPC meetings. The front page of agendas (i.e. items of business but not associated papers) will be published on the States Assembly website. The full agenda will be distributed electronically to PPC members.

Independent and impartial minutes of all PPC meetings will be made by Officers from the States Greffe to provide a complete, impartial and objective audit trail of the work of the PPC. These will record main points of discussion and all decisions and financial matters but will not be verbatim. PPC decisions must be made at formally convened meetings (in person or electronically) at which an Officer from the States Greffe is present to record those decisions.

The minutes will be signed by the Chair once the PPC has agreed that they represent a true record of the proceedings. The minutes of each meeting will then be published electronically as soon as possible after each meeting.

A member of the States who is not a member of the PPC may observe any of its meetings but must withdraw at any time when the PPC is discussing any matter or information which it is entitled to discuss in private.

Planning a Forward Work Programme

At the start of its term of office, the PPC will consider a work programme based on its terms of reference.

The PPC will revisit its forward work programme on a regular basis in order to take into account new developments and matters of the States Assembly. In that regard, the PPC will need to retain a degree of flexibility in their forward planning which will enable matters to be re-prioritised as new circumstances arise.

PPC output

There are a number of outcomes from which the PPC may select including:

• A formal report, presented to the States

• Formal Comments' to a proposition, presented to the States

• A proposition and/or amendments

• Media/public engagement

States Assembly meetings

The PPC will present a list of meetings (usually beginning on a Tuesday) of the States for the 1st and 2nd sessions in the following year. This must be undertaken no later than the end of September in each year.

In relation to requisitioned meetings, the Bailiff will consult the Chair of PPC to convene the meeting, which may be within or outside the session.

Arranging public business for States Assembly meetings

If it appears to the Greffier that the volume of business for a meeting exceeds the expected duration of a States Assembly meeting, the Greffier will notify the Chair of PPC who will take whatever steps considered necessary to remedy the imbalance.

Before a States Assembly meeting closes, the presiding officer will invite the Chair of PPC to propose, without notice, the arrangement of public business for future meetings.

Commissioner for Standards

In instances where a complaint has been made to the Commissioner of Standards about an elected member, the Commissioner will report the outcome of an investigation to the PPC. Under the code of conduct for elected members, the PPC –

• will review the Commissioner's report;

• will give the elected member whose act had been investigated the right to address the PPC, accompanied, if the elected member wishes, by a person of his or her choice;

• will form an opinion, on the basis of the information before it, as to whether or not the elected member has breached the code of conduct and what action, if any, should be taken;

• will inform the elected member of it opinion with reasons and what action, if any, should be taken; and

• may report its opinion and reasons, and any action it thinks should be taken, or which has been taken to the States. This may be presented to the States in writing or made orally by the Chair in a statement.

Proposition to suspend a member

The PPC may lodge a proposition to suspend a member of the States as a sanction for certain actions. The proposition must propose the duration of the suspension.

States Assembly budget

Each financial year, the Council of Ministers must prepare a Government Plan and lodge it in sufficient time for the States to debate and approve it before the start of the next financial year. There is a duty on the PPC Chair to propose the States Assembly budget which is independent of ministerial control under the Public Finances (Jersey) Law 2019 (Article 10 (2)(b)).

Appendix – Terms of Reference for the PPC

1. to keep under review the composition, the practices and the procedures of the States as Jersey's legislature and bring forward for approval bythe States amendments to the Law and standing orders as considered appropriate;
2. to keep under review the rules for enfranchisement and for the conduct of elections and to bring forward for approval by the States amendments to the Public Elections (Jersey) Law 2002176 as considered appropriate;
3. to be responsible, in accordance with Article 24B of the Public Finances Law, for the preparation of the estimates of income and expenditure for the States and their services, and to ensure that the budget of the States is utilised in the most effective and cost-effective manner possible;
4. to be responsible for the provision of accommodation, services and facilities for members of the States and to bring forward for approval, as appropriate, recommendations for improvements and changes to these facilities;
5. to liaise as necessary with any person or body directed by the States to review the remuneration and expenses of elected members on all matters relating to such remuneration and expenses, and to bring forward for approval, as necessary, proposals relating to the terms of reference ofany such person or body or to the arrangements relating to the remuneration of elected members;
6. to take the necessary steps for the enforcement ofthe code of conduct for members of the States and in this context to promote high standards amongst members of the States and to champion and defend the privileges of members of the States;
7. to be responsible for the provision of information to the public about the work of the States and the work of the Council of Ministers, the scrutiny panels, and the PAC, and to keep these public information services under review;
8. to keep under review the procedures and enactments relating to public access to official information and the procedures relating to access to information for elected members;
9. to produce, in consultation with the Bailiff , the chairmen's committee and the Greffier, an annual report on the work of the States and of committees and panels established by standing orders and present the report to the States