TRANSPARENCY reforms in the Scottish Government will see ministers accused of bullying or other inappropriate behaviour named and shamed, the deputy first minister has announced.
The current policy – which has been criticised by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon – gives anonymity to senior politicians accused of misconduct, even if complaints against them are upheld.
Under the new procedures, ministers who are subject to complaints from civil servants will be named, with decision reports and judgments published in instances where complaints are fully or partially upheld.
Any reports published as a result of a complaint will be redacted to ensure the complainer cannot be identified, the Scottish Government said.
For those where the complaint is not upheld, a minister’s name and the outcome will be published for six months on the Scottish Government’s website.
Decisions made in complaint procedures which have already concluded will not be published, the Scottish Government has said.
“The First Minister advised the Scottish Parliament in June that the ministerial code and complaints procedure would be updated with regards to future complaints,” said John Swinney.
“The Scottish Government is determined to build a culture in which concerns are addressed early and in which all those who are involved with a complaint have confidence and can engage constructively and fairly in the process.”
The planned changes will come into effect by the end of the year.
In June, Sturgeon said she was not comfortable with the previous procedure and had instructed legal advisers to look at making the process more transparent.
Former SNP minister Fergus Ewing was named by the Daily Record as being the subject of a bullying probe, but under the current rules has never been officially confirmed as being under investigation.
Ewing has previously denied the accusations and because the new rules will not apply retrospectively, they will not be confirmed officially.
