Ethical Standards Commissioner

This regulatory body came into being in 2013 and exercises the functions of three former bodies: the Commission for Ethical Standards, the Public Standards Commissioner for Scotland and the Public Appointments Commissioner for Scotland. The Commissioner investigates complaints about the conduct of MSPs, local authority councillors and members of public bodies and also regulates how people are appointed to the boards of public bodies in Scotland. The Decisions available on the website extend back to 2003. The “Links” section gives access to the Code of Conduct for MSPs, the Councillors’ Code of Conduct and the Model Code of Conduct for Members of Devolved Public Bodies. The current Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies in Scotland is available on the site itself, along with previous editions of various codes.