A Highland Member of the Scottish Parliament has written to the First Minister urging new laws to "clean up politics" and to demonstrate that reform commitments from government will be backed by statutory change.
Call for statutory measures
The appeal was made by David Green MSP, the Scottish Liberal Democrat spokesperson for Public Sector Reform. In his letter he warned that the Scottish Government's pledges to foster a culture of "transparency, improvement and constructive challenge" will "ring hollow unless the Scottish Government demonstrates leadership by changing the way it works", the party said.
The intervention follows exchanges at Holyrood in which Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole‑Hamilton MSP urged the First Minister to "stop standing in the way of efforts to clean up our politics" after revelations surrounding the former SNP chief executive.
"stop standing in the way of efforts to clean up our politics"
What the Liberal Democrats want
The Scottish Liberal Democrats have published a package of reforms aimed at restoring public trust. The measures include proposals to change the law in several areas so that political actors and processes are subject to clearer, enforceable standards.
- Introduce a right to recall MSPs in cases of proven misconduct
- Enshrine the Scottish Ministerial Code in legislation to strengthen ministerial accountability
- Create a rule of Contempt of Parliament to ensure the government acts on parliamentary decisions
- Amend the Disclosure Act 2020 and Protection of Vulnerable Groups Act 2007 so safeguarding rules apply to politicians
- Introduce a "duty to record" for important ministerial meetings and decisions
- Extend Freedom of Information rules to companies providing government services
- Empower organisations funded by public money to speak out
Context and consequences
Those demands come against a backdrop of recent controversy within the SNP and wider public concern about standards in public life. The Liberal Democrats argue that non‑legislative pledges are insufficient and that legal change is required to make accountability meaningful.
If taken forward, the proposals would require primary or secondary legislation and would involve cross‑government co‑ordination. Enshrining the ministerial code in statute, for example, would alter long‑standing conventions about how ministers are held to account and could change the role of parliamentary committees in investigations.
Extending Freedom of Information rules to private contractors would create new transparency obligations on entities delivering public services, with implications for procurement and commercial confidentiality. A statutory "duty to record" ministerial meetings would shift current norms about record‑keeping and could increase the documentary trail for policy decisions.
Political response and next steps
The SNP has said reforming public services will be the "defining task" of the government and has committed to fostering transparency and improvement. The Liberal Democrats contend, however, that such commitments require demonstrable legislative action.
At present, the Scottish Government has not announced plans to introduce the specific laws sought by the Liberal Democrats. Any move to legislate would necessitate detailed drafting, ministerial agreement and likely debate at Holyrood — providing opposition parties an avenue to press their case publicly and through parliamentary motion.
| Proposal | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Right to recall MSPs | Allow constituents to remove MSPs found guilty of serious misconduct |
| Statutory Ministerial Code | Place ministerial standards and sanctions on a legal footing |
| Extend FOI to contractors | Increase transparency over outsourced public services |
The scale of the proposals means they would touch on constitutional practice, public administration and the rules governing politicians' conduct. For them to be implemented requires not only political will but also legal scrutiny and public consultation. Opposition parties will use forthcoming parliamentary opportunities to press for clarity on whether the government intends to convert its reform rhetoric into law.
For now, the Liberal Democrats have set out their demands and the argument that statutory safeguards are necessary to rebuild trust. It is now for the Scottish Government to set out whether it will translate those demands into a legislative programme.
