Codes of Conduct and other legal instruments for building the public trust in parliaments Austrian regulations and experiences

Alexandra Becker, Austrian Parliamentary Administration ECPRD Seminar “Structures and procedures with regard to the code of conduct for MPs and with regard to the integrity of parliamentary staff” 8/9 May 2014, Skopje

Code of Conduct and other legal instruments • There is

no Code of Conduct

for Members of the Austrian Parliament • But there are

complex regulations

concerning the rights and duties of Members of Parliament in various laws • There is

no internal Compliance Body

in the Austrian Parliament •

Scope of this Presentation

: (1.) Austrian National Council Rules of Procedure Act (2.) Austrian Federal Constitution (3.) Transparency Package (Incompatibility and Transparency Law in detail) (4.) Practical Experience 2 REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH Parlament

1. Austrian National Council Rules of Procedure Act •

Compulsory presence

in plenary and committee sittings • The

president

has to ensure the protection of the dignity and the rights of the National Council/the Federal Council • Disciplinary measures:

Call to Order

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2. Incompatibility Rules in the Austrian Federal Constitution • • • • • • • • • Membership in a parliamentary chamber is

incompatible with

being: Member of the other parliamentary chamber Member of the European Parliament Austrian Federal President President of the Audit Office Member of the Ombudsman Board Member of the Supreme Court of Justice, the Constitutional Court, an Administrative Court or the Higher Administrative Court There is

no incompatibility

with being a Member of the Federal Government or a State Parliament 4 REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH Parlament

3. “Transparency Package” July 2012

Reforms

of the: • Political Party Act • Criminal Code (Act Amending Anti-Corruption Legislation) • Act on the Transparency of Lobbying and Interest Representation • Incompatibility and Transparency Act 5 REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH Parlament

Incompatibility and Transparency Act I • Regulates the

admissibility

of

activities

in the private and public sector • All information concerning incompatibility has to be given

within one month

from joining the Parliament • Members of Parliament are

not allowed

to accept any

lobby-order

• The

President

of the National Council and the

chairman/chairwoman

of a Parliamentary Group are generally

not allowed

to have any

profession with commercial motivation

• There is

no need to report

functions that can only be taken up because of being a Member of Parliament 6 REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH Parlament

Incompatibility and Transparency Act II – Obligations to report • Every

leading position

in a stock company, a limited liability company, a foundation or a savings bank • Every Employment with a

regional authority

• Every

activity

for which Members of Parliament get than a compensation of costs

money

that is more • Every

leading voluntary activity

•

Gross monthly income

in addition to the income as a Member of Parliament -

5 categories

: 1-1.000 €, 1.001-3.500 €, 3.501-7.000 €, 7.001 10.000 € and more than 10.000 € 7 REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH Parlament

Incompatibility and Transparency Act III – Consequences • All reported information has to be

published

by the President of the National Council/the Federal Council on the

Website

of the Austrian Parliament • The responsibility for the

correctness

and functions and activities lies only with the

completeness Members

of the reported of Parliament • The

Incompatibility Committee examines functions

only if the already

reported

are compatible with the work as a Member of Parliament • If a Member of Parliament engages in an occupation or holds an office without permission, the Incompatibility Committee can file a

request for termination of the office with the Constitutional Court

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Practical Experience • In October 2013 a

new database

for Members of Parliament to fill in all relevant data (personal data, biographical data, data for the parliament‘s children website, data to transfer the salary) went online •

Obligations

to report because of the

Incompatibility

and Transparency Act were also

implemented

•

Information/Lists

for the Website is/are

automatically created

• “

Service Centre

” 9 REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH Parlament

Screenshot database “input form” 10 REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH Parlament

Screenshot “Who-is-Who-Page” 11 REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH Parlament

Screenshot “Transparency Tab” 12 REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH Parlament

Screenshot “Incompatibility and Transparency List” 13 REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH Parlament

Conclusions •

Transparency

has

increased

significantly because of the new regulations • Members of Parliament are very

interested in correct reporting

• The legal

regulations

are

still

very

complex

– the

database

should

help

to prepare the information in a comprehensible way • There are discussions but no concrete plans for a real Code of Conduct 14 REPUBLIK ÖSTERREICH Parlament

Further information www.parlament.gv.at

Alexandra Becker Legal, Legislative and Research Services Austrian Parliament Dr. Karl Renner-Ring 3, A-1017 Vienna Tel. +43 1 40 110-2764 (2608) E-mail: [email protected]

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