Issue - meetings

By Councillor Nols-McVey - Suspending Councillors Facing Arrest

“1)        Notes the UK Parliament has voted to ban MPs from attending Parliament in cases when the MP has been arrested for specific violent or sexual offences.

2)         Council welcomes this move and agrees that the Ethical Standards Commissioner should follow suite, with a clear adopted policy that sitting Councillors who are arrested for the same offences as those listed by the UK Parliament will be immediately suspended as Councillors until a decision can made on the suitability to remain in office- overturning a previous approach to allow Councillors to remain working while Police and criminal processes were ongoing.

3)         Council agrees that the Monitoring Officer will write to the Ethical Standards Commissioner to encourage such a policy change and report back to Full Council no later than 4 cycles with the Commissioners' response and providing an update on progress.

4)         Council additionally agrees that the update report should include options and proposals to proactively remove any Edinburgh Councillor from as many duties as possible should the standards commission fail to act. Should a member be arrested for those offences mentioned above, Council should consider a mechanism to immediately remove the member from all committees, protect Council staff (including support staff following the precautionary principle) and remove any senior Councillor from any position they hold upon arrest.”