New proposals for MSPs' disclosure of interests
13 Sep 05
Proposed new rules relate to MSPs' financial and non-financial interests
Proposed new rules will require MSPs to register non-financial as well as financial interests.
The suggested changes come in the wake of First Minister Jack McConnell's call for greater clarification of the rules earlier this year, after it appeared that he needed to declare the cost of a painting his wife gave him for Christmas.
The new rules have been proposed by Holyrood's standards committee and will be published today. They would replace the rules which have governed members' interests since 1999.
Under the new code, MSPs and their partners would need to register the market values of shareholdings, rather than the initial cost. Any MSP's partner's interest in property would also require to be recorded.
The standards committee has also proposed an objective influence test to help MSPs determine when they need to register non-financial interests.