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News : International : Caribbean News : Turks & Caicos Islands Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM


TCI: Code of Conduct on conflict of interest as applicable to Hon. Members of the House of Assembly
By TCI Government Press Office
Mar 5, 2014 - 12:22:30 PM

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TURKS & CAICOS - Recent press reports which have come to the attention of the Integrity Commission suggest that there may be some confusion concerning some provisions of the Code of Conduct for Persons in Public Life (the Code) and in particular how its provisions on conflict of interests apply to Hon. Members of the House of Assembly.  The Commission has been in correspondence with the Deputy Speaker concerning the specific concerns she raised as to her own position. Given that these concerns have become a matter of public debate, the Commission feels it would be useful to clarify matters for the benefit of the public.

1.  The purpose of the Code, and indeed of the Commission, is not to catch people out, but rather to help persons in public life to raise the standards of integrity in the Islands.   Although the Code was formulated and published after public consultation in the Islands, its provisions are not set in stone but are kept under constant review by the Commission and are subject to be amended as practical circumstances may warrant. The Commission therefore welcomes constructive suggestions as to its practical out-workings and how best it may be improved.  

2. It is important to note that the Code, as it relates to conflict of interest, was drafted after taking into account, the unique challenges of small islands environment of TCI, its antecedent history and the need to ensure the protection of the decision-making integrity of the relevant public bodies (including the House of Assembly) and to secure public confidence in them. For this reason, the provisions of the Code on conflict of interest are deliberately detailed and fairly comprehensive.

3.  It is not possible for the Commission to prescribe in advance an exhaustive list of situations in which a Member of the House of Assembly should or should not abstain from any debate and or vote.  Neither can the Code be reasonably expected to provide a hard and fast rule on how to identify, avoid and or manage all circumstances of conflict of interest. However, the Code and its Appendix B, provide a unique and useful framework to guide and inform public bodies (including the House of Assembly) in the formulation or revision of their internal rules and regulations on conflict of interest.

4. Accordingly, and consistent with parliamentary best practice and commitment to good governance, it is expected that the TCI House of Assembly should,  under its Rules and Standing Orders, address in more practical terms, the issue of conflict of interest and have its Hon. Members  be governed thereby.

In this regard, and as a matter of principle, it is unreasonable and fraught with inherent danger to the democratic process, to expect the Commission to advise individual Hon. Members on every issue of conflict of interest that arises or may arise in the House. This is a matter best suited for the House to deal with, assisted by its officers which include its legal adviser.

5. At the end of the day however, it is the ultimate responsibility of the Hon. Members  to order their own private lives in such a way as to avoid criticism and to decide whether and what action is needed to avoid a conflict or the perception of a conflict.   In each case, the Hon. Member must ask himself or herself not only whether the private interest would affect how he or she participates in the debate and or voting, but whether that interest might create a reasonable suspicion in fair minded members of the public that this might be the case.

In most cases, it is a judgment call that the Hon. Member will have to make.  That is why they are Honourable Members. Where the Hon. Member has made a decision honestly and in good faith, even where an alternative course may have been arguable, then that Member need not be concerned that the Commission or the House of Assembly will fault him or her for an honest and diligent attempt to comply with the Code or any House Rules or Standing Orders which have been informed by or have like effect as the Code on conflict of interest.

6.  Finally, on the specific episode of declaration of conflict of interest by the Deputy Speaker, the Commission confirms and endorses the position which its Director had taken on the matter, namely that the Hon. Josephine Connolly ought, in the circumstances, to declare her interest and abstain from participating in the debate (including chairing the relevant Committee) and voting.  The Commission is aware that in doing so, the Director was merely endorsing similar position earlier taken by the Hon. Opposition Members of the House of which the Deputy Speaker is a part.

7. The Commission however regrets that this highly commendable stance on a conflict of interest matter, which the relevant Hon. Members and the Deputy Speaker have taken, appears to have been overshadowed by the criticism of the Code and the Commission in and outside of the House. 


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