House of Lords appoints new Commissioners for Standards

Commissioners for Standards

The Commissioners for Standards is responsible for the independent and impartial investigation of alleged breaches of the House of Lords Code of Conduct, including bullying, harassment and sexual misconduct.

New Commissioners

Martin Jelly and Akbar Khan will take over from the current Commissioner for Standards, Lucy Scott-Moncrieff, on 1 June and 1 July respectively.

Martin Jelly

Martin Jelley QPM is Chief Constable of Warwickshire Police Force (retiring June). He has worked in policing for 33 years, including as the National Police Chiefs' Council lead on vetting, professional and ethical standards. He was awarded the Queen's Police Medal for distinguished service in 2016.

Akbar Khan

Akbar Khan is a barrister and a qualified investigator for bullying, harassment and misconduct. He has worked as Head of International Law at the British Embassy The Hague, representing British legal interests before the UN International Courts and Tribunals, and as Secretary-General of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.

He currently serves as a statutory Legally Qualified Chairperson for several police regulatory misconduct bodies and the first Head of Judiciary for the International Rugby League (IRL).

House of Lords approval

Members approved the motion put forward by Lord Mance (Crossbench), Chairman of the Conduct Committee, in the chamber on Wednesday 26 May.

Lord Mance, commenting ahead of the appointment, said:

'I welcome the House’s appointment of Martin Jelley and Akbar Khan. They each come to the role of Commissioner with a wealth of experience that will benefit the House and provide a robust and resilient resource for the enforcement of the Code.

I thank Lucy Scott-Moncrieff for all her work as Commissioner, particularly during a period which has presented some very challenging cases.'

Image: House of Lords / Jessica Taylor