Former health secretary and Falkirk West MSP, Michael Matheson, may face suspension and a salary cut for using his parliamentary iPad during a family vacation in Morocco to rack up £10,941.74 in costs. The incident resulted in a report by the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB) that concluded Matheson had violated MSPs’ ethical code. MSPs are due to debate the recommended punishment during a session, with the Standards Committee recommending a 27-day suspension and 54 days without pay. The recommended punishment is the most severe to be imposed on an MSP.
While the SNP minority administration, egged on by party leader John Swinney, has opposed the removal of Matheson, who resigned as health secretary in February, Scottish Greens have opted in favor of the punishment. Greens insisted that the SNP’s attempt to dilute the sanctions through an amendment would not be acceptable. If opposition MSPs back the proposed punishment, it will pass regardless of the position taken by all of the party’s 63 MSPs. The Scottish Conservative party separately proposed that Matheson should resign from Holyrood over the incident, but it is also unlikely to pass after Greens disapproved of the motion.
Mr. Matheson pointed out that he believed the process had been partial against him, while an SNP Holyrood group spokesperson urged a review of the complaints process. The Greens are concerned that the proposed punishment is arbitrary and that committee members leaked draft recommendations. Notably, unlike at Westminster, where MPs may be recalled by constituents for being suspended for over ten days, no such mechanism exists in Holyrood.
Meanwhile, Scottish Tory party leader Douglas Ross stated that Matheson should resign as an MSP and that a by-election could be held on 4 July, the same day as the general election. Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton also backed Matheson’s resignation. Cole-Hamilton decried Matheson’s loss of the public’s confidence
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