Members of the House
| 1. |
Performance of functions by members |
A member of the House must—
| a) |
perform the functions of office in good faith and in an honest, nondiscriminatory and transparent manner; and |
| b) |
at all times act in the best interest of the House and in such a way that the credibility and integrity of the House are not compromised. |
| 2. |
Attendance at meetings |
A member of the House must attend each meeting of the House and of a committee of which that member of the House is a member, except when—
| a) |
leave of absence is granted in terms of an applicable law or as determined by the rules and orders of the House; or |
| b) |
that member of the House is required in terms of this Code to withdraw from the meeting. |
| 3. |
Sanctions for non-attendance of meetings |
| 1) |
The House may impose a sanction as determined by the rules and orders of the House on a member of the House for— |
| a) |
not attending a meeting which that member of the House is required to attend in terms of item 2; or |
| b) |
failing to remain in attendance at such a meeting. |
| a) |
A member of the House who is absent from three or more consecutive meetings of the House, or from three or more consecutive meetings of a committee of the House, which that member of the House is required to attend in terms of item 2, must be removed from office as a member of the House. |
| b) |
The Minister must inform the relevant Premier of the removal of the member. |
| 3) |
Proceedings for the imposition of a sanction including removal of a member of the House must be conducted in accordance with a uniform standing procedure which the House must adopt for the purposes of this item and in accordance with the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, 2000 (Act No. 3 of 2000). |
| 4. |
Disclosure of interests |
| 1) |
A member of the House must— |
| a) |
disclose to the House, or to any committee of the House of which that member of the House is a member, any direct or indirect personal or private business interest that that member of the House, or any spouse, partner or business associate of that member of the House, may have in any matter before the House or the committee of the House; and |
| b) |
withdraw from the proceedings of the House or committee of the House when that matter is considered by the House or its committee, unless the House or its committee decides that the member of the House's direct or indirect interest in the matter is trivial or irrelevant. |
| 2) |
A member of the House who, or whose spouse, partner, business associate or close family member, acquired or stands to acquire any direct benefit from a contract concluded with the House, must disclose full particulars of the benefit of which the member of the House is aware at the first meeting of the House at which it is possible for the member of the House to make the disclosure. |
| 3) |
This section does not apply to an interest or benefit which a member of the House, or a spouse, partner, business associate or close family member, has or acquires in common with other members of the House. |
| 1) |
A member of the House may not use the position or privileges of a member of the House, or confidential information obtained as a member of the House, for private gain or to improperly benefit another person. |
| 2) |
Except with the prior consent of the House, a member of the House may not— |
| a) |
be a party to or beneficiary under a contract for— |
| i) |
the provision of goods or services to the House; or |
| ii) |
the performance of any work otherwise than as a member of the House and for the House; |
| b) |
obtain a financial interest in any business of the House; or |
| c) |
for a fee or other consideration appear on behalf of any other person before the House or its committee. |
| 3) |
If more than one quarter of the members of the House object to consent being given to a member of the House in terms of subitem (2), such consent may only be given to the member of the House with the approval of the Minister. |
| 6. |
Declaration of interests |
| 1) |
When elected or appointed, a member of the House must within 60 days declare in writing to an officer of the House designated by the Minister the following financial interests held by that member of the House; |
| a) |
Shares and securities in any company; |
| b) |
membership of any close corporation; |
| c) |
interest in any trust; |
| f) |
other financial interests in any business undertaking; |
| g) |
employment and remuneration; |
| j) |
subsidies, grants and sponsorships by any organisation. |
| 2) |
Any change in the nature or detail of the financial interests of a member of the House must be declared in writing to the officer referred to in sub-item (1) annually. |
| 3) |
Gifts received by a member of the House above a prescribed amount must also be declared in accordance with subitem (1). |
| 4) |
The House must determine which of the financial interests referred to in subitem (1) must be made public having regard to the need for confidentiality and the public interest for disclosure. |
| 7. |
Rewards, gifts and favours |
A member of the House may not request, solicit or accept any reward, gift or favour for—
| a) |
voting or not voting in a particular manner on any matter before the House or before a committee of the House of which that member of the House is a member; |
| b) |
persuading the House or any committee of the House with regard to the exercise of any power, function or duty; |
| c) |
making a representation to the House or any committee of the House; or |
| d) |
disclosing privileged or confidential information. |
| 8. |
Unauthorised disclosure of information |
| 1) |
A member of the House may not without the permission of the House or a committee disclose any privileged or confidential information of the House or committee to any unauthorised person. |
| 2) |
For the purpose of this item "privileged or confidential information" includes any information— |
| a) |
determined by the House or committee of the House to be privileged or confidential; |
| b) |
discussed in closed session by the House or its committees; |
| c) |
disclosure of which would violate a person's right to privacy; or |
| d) |
declared to be privileged, confidential or secret in terms of the law. |
| 3) |
This item does not derogate from the right of any person to access to information in terms of national legislation. |
| 1) |
If the House, on reasonable grounds, is of the opinion that a provision of the Code of Conduct has been breached, the House must— |
| a) |
authorise an investigation of the facts and circumstances of the alleged breach; |
| b) |
give the member of the House a reasonable opportunity to reply in writing regarding the alleged breach; and |
| c) |
report the matter to a meeting of the House after paragraphs (a) and (b) have been complied with. |
| 2) |
A report referred to in subitem (1)(c) may be made available to the public. |
| 3) |
The House must report the outcome of the investigation to the Minister. |
| 4) |
The Secretary of the House must ensure that each member of the House when taking office is given a copy of this Code and that a copy of the Code is available in every room or place where the House or a committee of the House meets. |
| a) |
investigate and make a finding on any alleged breach of a provision of this Code; or |
| b) |
establish a special committee— |
| i) |
to investigate and make a finding on any alleged breach of this Code; and |
| ii) |
to make appropriate recommendations to the House. |
| 6) |
If the House or a special committee appointed by the House to conduct the investigation finds that a member of the House has breached a provision of this part of the Code of Conduct, the House may— |
| a) |
issue a formal warning to the member of the House; |
| b) |
reprimand the member of the House; |
| c) |
suspend the member of the House for a period in consultation with the Minister; and |
| d) |
remove the member of the House from office in consultation with the Minister. |
| a) |
Any member of the House who has been warned, reprimanded, suspended or removed in terms of paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d) of sub-item (6) may within 14 days of having been notified of the decision of House appeal to the Minister in writing setting out the reasons on which the appeal is based. |
| b) |
A copy of the appeal must be provided to the House. |
| c) |
The House may within 14 days of receipt of the appeal referred to in paragraph (b) make any representation pertaining to the appeal to the Minister in writing. |
| d) |
The Minister may, after having considered the appeal, confirm, set aside or vary the decision of the House and inform the member of the House and the House of the outcome of the appeal. |
| 8) |
The Minister may appoint a person or a committee to investigate any alleged breach of a provision of this Code and to make recommendations on whether the member of the House should be suspended or removed from office. |
| 9) |
If the Minister is of the opinion that a member of the House has breached a provision of this Code, and that such contravention warrants a suspension or removal from office, the Minister may— |
| a) |
suspend the member of the House for a period and on conditions determined by the Minister; or |
| b) |
remove the member of the House from office. |
| 10) |
Any investigation in terms of this item must be conducted in accordance with the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, 2000 (Act No. 3 of 2000). |
Public Service Commission Act, 1997
