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Commissioner's response to first IEP annual report

Kathryn Stone OBE, Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, responds to the Independent Expert Panel's first annual report. 

This report is an excellent reflection of the invaluable work of the IEP, upholding trust and confidence in the ICGS and effecting positive change in the culture in the House of Commons. I share the Panel's concern about the timeliness and quality of investigations. My team and I have been working closely with the ICGS as they implement the changes outlined in their annual report, and as I adapt my oversight to encourage continuous improvement.  

Kathryn Stone OBE
Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards

Notes for Editors

(Please direct all press enquiries to standardscommissioner@parliament.uk the inbox is monitored during working weekdays)

1. The current framework for Parliamentary Standards dates from 1995, when the first Commissioner was appointed. Kathryn Stone OBE is the sixth Commissioner. She was appointed for five years with effect from 1 January 2018. The appointment is not renewable.

2. The Commissioner's main duties are:

  • to maintain the Register of Members' Financial Interests and the other registers of interests for Members' staff, journalists and All-Party Groups;
  • to provide advice confidentially on matters relating to the registration and declaration of interests;
  • to advise the Committee on Standards on the interpretation of the Code of Conduct;
  • to monitor the operation of the Code of Conduct and registers and to make recommendations to the Committee thereon;
  • to investigate, if she thinks fit, specific matters which have come to her attention relating to the conduct of Members and to report on them to the Committee on Standards.
  • to consider cases arising under the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme.

  • the Commissioner's remit was extended on 19 July 2018 to allow her to oversee investigations and make findings in cases against MPs under the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS).

Details of the ICGS scheme can be found here.

Details of the Independent Expert Panel can be found here.