Whom
might be covered by the disclosure of the requirement?
22. We consider that the proposed registration requirement
should apply to any employment paid for from the Staffing Allowance
of Members':
- spouses and civil partners;
- parents and parents in law;
- children (including step-children);
- grandparents;
- grandchildren;
- siblings; and
It should also apply to:
- siblings of the Members' spouse
or civil partner;
- uncles and aunts of the Member and of their spouse
or civil partner; and
- nephews and nieces of the Member and of the spouse
or civil partner.
23. We also consider that Members' partners should
be treated for this purpose on an equal footing with spouses or
civil partners, and we have given thought to how they should be
defined for this purpose. In essence, there appear to be three
principal options:
- to leave the matter to Members'
individual judgement;
- to define a partner as a person lived with as
if married to them, or as if in a civil partnership. Such an approach
is used by the Inland Revenue for the purpose of eligibility for
tax credits, and by the Child Support Agency; and
- to define a partner as above, but with the qualification
that the relationship must have subsisted for a minimum period.
A test along these lines is used in other circumstances, such
as intestacy.
24. We understand that the House issues a spouse
pass to a Member's partner on the basis of a request from the
Member. Clearly, if a Member is willing to acknowledge the relationship
in this way, the requirement to register any employment of that
partner should follow automatically. Subject to that, we do not
favour the first option, as we consider it important that there
is consistency between Members. The third option describes a relationship
which, having subsisted for a period, is more likely to be a matter
of public knowledge. On balance, our preference is for the
second option other than where the partner holds a staff pass.
25. There is also the question of former spouses
and civil partners, partners and their children. There are arguments
for including them, on the ground that the terms of their employment
may be influenced by the former relationship, and equally arguments
that they are entitled a degree of privacy. Such arrangements
are also likely to be rare. One possibility would be to require
their inclusion on the register for a period (perhaps three years)
after the relevant relationship has ended.
What
information should be given in the Register entry?
26. There are in essence three principal sets of
circumstances to be covered:
- Staff first employed after
July 31 2001 and employed on standard contracts of employment
using one or more of the Department of Resources' job descriptions;
- Staff in post on July 31 2001 and employed under
a continuing contract of employment; and
- Staff employed other than under a contract of
employment, for example, freelance staff.
27. For staff in the first category we propose that
all that would need to be registered is that the employee has
a standard contract and the Register entry would give the relevant
standard job description from the Department of Resources' list.
For staff in the second category, we propose that the entry should
say that the employee has been employed since before July 31 2001
and give the nearest standard job descriptions to which their
duties are broadly equivalent. For the third category, we propose
that the entry should give a brief description of the basis on
which they are employed and the work that they do.
28. We give an example below of what a typical Register
entry might look like, assuming the House accepts our proposals
as set out in this report.
Category 11
