Sweeping changes to the code, drafted by David Goy, would allow States members to speak and act as they wished, as long as they were not breaking the law.
His proposal would essentially roll back the internal disciplinary constraints gradually imposed on deputies since the first code of conduct was introduced 20 years ago.
‘Outside of parliament, a deputy has less freedom of speech than an ordinary citizen because an ordinary citizen is accountable to the law, but deputies are beholden to the code of conduct as well as the law,’ he said.
‘The code of conduct can easily be weaponised because it contains very broad clauses.
‘If somebody wants to make your life difficult, and if you’re a very outspoken deputy, they could actually bring you into trouble.
‘I have come up with a draft requete which would grant deputies not more freedom of speech, but the same amount of freedom of speech as an ordinary citizen has outside of parliament.’
Deputy Goy told the latest episode of the Guernsey Press Politics Podcast, out this weekend, that he did not yet have enough support to submit his requete but was hopeful of pushing it to a debate in the States Assembly at some point in the political term.
He was inspired to act partially by a recent recommendation to suspend Deputy Gavin St Pier over code of conduct breaches, which the States rejected, prompting the resignation of its commissioner for standards.
The commissioner can throw out unsubstantiated cases, but Deputy Goy believed that even knowing code of conduct complaints could be submitted for such a wide range of actions potentially ‘put off’ elected members from speaking their mind.
‘If I always have to walk on eggshells, I can’t do my job properly,’ he said.
‘I always have to think that if I say this or that, or criticise this party or that, someone else could get offended and then pull me in front of the commissioner.
‘My requete basically says that if it’s good enough in the eyes of the law, it’s good enough for a deputy. If Joe Public can say it, it should be good enough for a deputy. This way you have true freedom of speech because it is so important for us.
‘Without freedom of speech, especially those deputies who are outspoken and want to hold power to account cannot really do our job properly without being in danger of the code of conduct.’
He was particularly critical of clauses in the code which he felt could lead to a deputy who had criticised a colleague or the States then being sanctioned for bringing the organisation into disrepute.
‘Let’s say you are convicted of something criminal and the code says you are not fit for office. That kind of thing is totally fine with me. Where I am not ok with the code is curtailing freedom of speech which is so vital for a deputy.’