Voters would have powers to remove misbehaving MSPs under proposed Bill
A new Bill has been introduced at Holyrood to give voters more powers to remove badly behaving MSPs from Parliament.
Scottish Conservative MSP Graham Simpson’s Recall and Removal of Members Bill will allow voters to kick politicians out of Holyrood under certain conditions.
The legislation enables the removal of MSPs who fail to attend Parliament at least once every six months, unless a valid reason is given.
It also introduces automatic disqualification of MSPs who are jailed for six months or more. Currently, someone has to be imprisoned for more than a year for that to happen.
In addition, the Bill includes a mechanism that allows both constituency and regional voters to trigger a recall process if their MSP is found guilty of serious misconduct, or if their conduct in office is deemed unacceptable.
The process would involve a petition and, if successful, a recall election would be called.
It comes a day after Mr Simpson’s amendment to the Scottish Elections (Representation and Reform) Bill on Tuesday to ban MSPs from also sitting in the House of Commons or the House of Lords was voted through Holyrood.
The move means so-called “double-jobbing” will likely be banned in Scotland – something that is already in force in Wales and Northern Ireland.
Mr Simpson said: “It’s vital that the public have trust in their elected representatives.
“This Bill aims to empower constituents and ensure that those who have been given the responsibility of representing them can be held to account when they fail to meet the high standards expected of them.”
The Central Scotland MSP urged parties across the political spectrum to back his Bill, which he said has widespread support.
He added: “It is time we had a system where elected representatives are answerable to their constituents if they fall below the standards we expect.
“The public should have the power to decide whether their MSP is fit to serve, especially if they’re not fulfilling their role in a responsible and effective manner.
“This Bill is about restoring trust in the political system and ensuring that our democracy works for the people it serves.”