Members' Business: Tackling Intimidation in Public Life

That the Parliament welcomes the announcement from the Committee on Standards in Public Life and the Jo Cox Foundation that they will work together on a Joint Standard of Conduct that will set out the minimum standards of behaviour expected from all political party members in order to reduce intimidation and abuse in public life and raise public awareness about its impact, including in the Scottish Borders; understands that a survey by BBC 5 Live found that 90% of MPs elected in 2017 said they experienced some form of abuse, while the Intimidation in Public Life: A Review by the Committee on Standards in Public Life report found that people are being put off from standing for elected office as a result of intimidation; further understands that the Scottish Women’s Convention has noted that "A huge amount of the abuse directed at female parliamentary candidates in particular is highly sexualised and dangerous"; believes that this is yet another barrier for women to be elected to public office, and notes calls for the Parliament to establish a similar Code of Conduct that would assist MSPs and Scottish parliamentary candidates to reduce intimidation and help victims deal with problems effectively as it considers that reducing intimidation is one way that the Parliament and other elected bodies in the UK can empower more women to stand for election and help achieve equal gender representation.