OFFICIALS at Holyrood have been asked to examine the rules around party political events at the Scottish Parliament after concerns were raised over a gathering held by Tory politicians.
An SNP MSP has asked representatives of the Scottish Parliament’s Corporate Body (SPCB) about a meeting on November 8, described by Parliamentary authorities as a “members dining night”.
The Facebook post by MSP Alexander Stewart showed pictures of Tory MSPs and councillors with glasses of wine in their hands.
His post read: "An excellent Scottish Conservatives' event for our councillors & group leaders at Holyrood this evening; discussing all their sterling work in our communities."
Stuart McMillan described the gathering as "concerning", adding that it was a "blatantly political" event that went against "the spirit of the rules" at Holyrood.
McMillan has now asked the Scottish Parliament body what rules are in place on members hosting political and party events outwith "MSP-sponsored events" which he says there are already clear rules against.
McMillan said: “Scotland’s Parliament should be an accessible place for everyone. However, seeing Tory MSPs boasting about a clear-cut party political social in Holyrood is concerning.
“Using their parliamentary privileges to undertake blatant party political business definitely breaks the spirit of the rules - it’s now time to see if it breaks the letter of the rules too.
“After my question in Parliament today, I’ve been encouraged to continue my engagement with the parliamentary authorities to get to the bottom of whether this ludicrous event was within the rules.
“Nobody is above scrutiny - and the Tories need to prepare themselves to answer serious questions about this dodgy bevvy session.”
When asked on Thursday what the rules were on party political events at Holyrood, Green MSP Maggie Chapman told McMillan: "All (SPCB) policies direct that parliamentary resources provided by the Corporate Body to support members to carry out their parliamentary duties must not be used to any significant extent for any other purpose, including party political reason.
"This includes office equipment, furniture, IT, mail systems ... and meeting rooms."
She said MSPs should use their best judgement on what is parliamentary activity and what is party political.
Chapman, a member of the SPCB, refused to discuss specific allegations of rule-breaking.
A Scottish Conservative spokesperson said: “This was a private dinner approved by the parliamentary authorities.”
