NATION NEWS – Integrity bill ‘one more time’ – Published 22nd July, 2023
Integrity bill ‘one more time’
Government yesterday made a second run at getting integrity in public life legislation on the statute books.
Tabling the Integrity in Public Life Bill,2023, in the House of Assembly, Attorney General Dale Marshall revealed the two changes made to the bill which failed in the Senate in 2020 when it could not earn the required two-thirds majority.
That majority had been easily reached in the House three years ago, and did so again yesterday, with all parliamentarians wholeheartedly supporting the new iteration.
Marshall said the new bill proposed amounted to what should be a “happy median”.
The main change is that only newlyappointed judges, along with their spouses and children, will have to complete declarations of their assets and liabilities before taking office, and that declarations of people in high office will not be published in the public domain.
The same protection for existing judges also applies to the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Auditor General.
“We’ve come here today to present this bill one more time to the people of Barbados, a piece of legislation which, in a vast majority of instances, replicates the one presented a few years ago,” the Attorney General said.
He noted that once again, consultation was held with a wide cross-section of Barbadians, members of the judicial sector, inclusive of former Attorney General and Chief Justice Sir David Simmons, in addition to opposition political parties.
Marshall said that when the first bill was rejected by members of the Upper Chamber, two areas had been of major concern – that high court judges were excluded, and some reports, if published, could make public the declarations of those involved.
Regarding judges, he said the position now taken should suffice.
“It is not a case where we like judges or don’t want to do anything against them. We cannot negatively affect the terms and conditions of existing judges. The law clearly sets that out.
“We have now reached a happy median. It may be inconvenient, but it is an inconvenient truth. It’s the law as it stands. As we chose judges we’ve had to choose people of the highest integrity,” Marshall explained. “I don’t feel we need to lose sleep about corrupt practices on the bench.”
In addition to members of the judiciary, the declaration of assets and liabilities, vetting and truth verification requirements will also apply to heads of department in the Public Service such as permanent secretaries, chairpersons of the island’s 56 state-owned enterprises, chief executive officers of Government agencies and magistrates.
Regarding the publishing of declarations, Marshall admitted that had been an oversight, and the issue had been ventilated before Parliament’s Select Committee. “It slipped through. We will not make any declarations public. That provision has been taken out.”
The Attorney General said the legislation, once passed in the Senate, will place Barbados in a strong position.
“I’m not suggesting corruption has been eradicated, but Barbados is no longer known for those things,” he said, while referencing that all members of Cabinet signed documents declaring their assets and liabilities in 2018 when they took office and again in 2021 after another 30-0 win at the polls.
“Honest people do those things,” Marshall declared.
From a global perspective, he said Barbados was in a much better place than five years ago and was now ranked in the top ten in the world of countries which follow the rule of law, and also perceived as one of the least corrupt countries in the Caribbean.
He said the current administration had already shown how serious it was by bringing to Parliament the Anti -Corruption Bill and an Anti-Terrorism Bill, as well as whistleblower legislation, and will now be placing its focus on a Freedom of Information Act going forward. (BA) Please see also Page 6.
Photo: Attorney General Dale Marshall during debate on the Integrity in Public Life Bill, 2023, in the House of Assembly yesterday. (GP)