January 14, 2019 Blog

Neil Findlay launches bid to ban second jobs for MSPs

14 January, 2019

Neil Findlay MSP

Trust in politicians, governments and the wider political process is at an all-time low.

Politicians are employed to serve the public, but all too often they can be found finding earning money from second or even third jobs outside of Parliament.

Members of the Scottish Parliament are elected by communities across the country to serve the people.  I know from my time in Holyrood that most do exactly that.

Sadly, however, that is not the case across the parliamentary chamber.

In a number of cases, MSPs have stretched the limits of acceptability and harmed the reputation of the Scottish Parliament.

That is why I have lodged a Member’s Bill at Holyrood which, if passed, would ban second jobs and ensure our parliamentarians are focused solely on serving the people.

 

A number of common sense exemptions would apply, such as allowing professionals who must carry out a certain number of hours per year in order to keep their professional credentials (e.g. a nurse or teacher) and those working as a carer for friends or family in which support payments are received, or as an unpaid carer.

The Bill would also see a restriction imposed on outside remuneration up to a certain percentage of an MSP’s annual salary and a restriction on the amount of time an MSP spends on activities that they have a financial interest in (including stocks, shares and dividends).

A public consultation on the Bill is now open, and I would love to hear your views on it. You can do so by clicking here.

This will put an end to MSPs taking a healthy wage from the public purse and then earning thousands on top when they should be serving their constituents.

This isn’t about stopping MSPs using their expertise, it’s about making sure they are best used in the Parliament, for the people.