“Managing conflicts of interest
1. For the purposes of this code, the following definitions shall apply:
1.1. a personal “interest” is something that could lead to a personal advantage to oneself or one’s close connections. The interest can arise in relation to one’s occupation, finances, business interests, relationships (family and friends), liabilities or other interests;
1.2. “close connections” includes one’s household, and close friends and family members;
1.3. a “conflict of interest” can be actual, perceived or potential. It is a situation where a person has a personal interest which is such as to influence or appear to influence the impartial and objective performance of their duties.
2. In their declarations of interest, members shall identify any actual, perceived or potential conflicts of interest between their personal interests and the public interest in the work of the Assembly. In doing so, special regard should be paid to that member’s particular roles within the Assembly (e.g. President or Vice-President of the Assembly; chairperson or vice-chairperson of a committee, sub-committee, network, platform, alliance or political group; rapporteur (including co-rapporteur, general rapporteur and youth rapporteur) or member of an ad hoc committee for the observation of elections), with a separate entry included in their declaration identifying any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest for each role.
3. Once an actual, potential or perceived conflict of interest has been identified, a member shall set out in their declaration of interest, remedial steps that will be taken to avoid that conflict unduly affecting their work in the Assembly. Remedial steps can include, for example:
– disclosure;
– third-party involvement;
– stepping back or recusal;
– refusal;
– avoidance.
4. Advice may be sought from the Council of Europe Ethics Officer who can provide confidential advice to members, tailored to the context of parliamentarians exercising their functions within the Assembly, to assist them in identifying and managing potential conflicts of interest. Advice may also be sought from the Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly who is responsible for the application of the code of conduct. It remains the responsibility of the member to declare any interests and to identify and appropriately resolve any conflicts of interest. Conflicts of interest should be resolved in favour of the public interest and must be disclosed.”;
“Obligation to update their declaration of interests to declare any interests relevant to that role, to identify any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest and to record how any such conflicts will be managed”;
“Obligation to update their declaration of interests to declare any interests relevant to that role, to identify any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest and to record how any such conflicts will be managed”.
“All candidates for membership of an ad hoc committee, at the time of putting forward their candidacy, shall make a written declaration of interests in connection with the country concerned by an election observation; this declaration shall be added to their declaration of interests published on the Assembly website, and shall identify any conflicts of interest (as defined in the Code of conduct for the members of the Parliamentary Assembly), and any remedial steps in relation to those interests and the work of the ad hoc committee for observing those elections. Political groups shall not submit the candidatures of members with unmanaged conflicts of interest in respect of a particular country.”
“Managing potential conflicts of interest
1. For the purposes of this code, the following definitions shall apply:
1.1. a personal “interest” is something that could lead to a personal advantage to oneself or one’s close connections. The interest can arise in relation to one’s occupation, finances, business interests, relationships (family and friends), liabilities or other interests.
1.2. close connections” includes one’s household, and close friends and family members.
1.3. a “conflict of interest” can be actual, perceived or potential. It is a situation where a person:
– has a personal interest;
– which is such as to influence or appear to influence;
– the impartial and objective performance of their duties.
2. In their declarations of interest, members shall identify any actual, perceived or potential conflicts of interest between their personal interests and the public interest in the work of the Assembly. In doing so, special regard should be paid to that member’s particular roles within the Assembly (e.g. President or Vice-President of the Assembly; chairperson or vice-chairperson of a committee, sub-committee, network, platform, alliance or political group; rapporteur (including co-rapporteur, general rapporteur and youth rapporteur) or member of an ad hoc committee for the observation of elections), with a separate entry included in their declaration identifying any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest for each role.
3. Once an actual, potential or perceived conflict of interest has been identified, a member shall set out in their declaration of interest, remedial steps that will be taken to avoid that conflict unduly affecting their work in the Assembly. Remedial steps can include, for example:
– disclosure;
– third-party involvement;
– stepping back or Recusal;
– refusal;
– avoidance.
4. Advice may be sought from the Council of Europe Ethics Officer who can provide confidential advice to members, tailored to the context of parliamentarians exercising their functions within the Assembly, to assist them in identifying and managing potential conflicts of interest. Advice may also be sought from the Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly. It remains the responsibility of the member to declare any interests and to identify and appropriately resolve any conflicts of interest. Conflicts of interest should be resolved in favour of the public interest and must be disclosed.”
“Obligation to update their declaration of interests to declare any interests relevant to that role, to identify any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest and to record how any such conflicts will be managed”
“Obligation to update their declaration of interests to declare any interests relevant to that role, to identify any potential, perceived or actual conflicts of interest and to record how any such conflicts will be managed”
“All candidates for membership of an ad hoc committee, at the time of putting forward their candidacy, shall make a written declaration of interests in connection with the country concerned by an election observation; this declaration shall be added to their declaration of interests published on the Assembly website, and shall identify any conflicts of interest (as defined in the Code of conduct for members of the Parliamentary Assembly), and any remedial steps in relation to those interests and the work of the ad hoc committee for observing those elections. Political groups shall not submit the candidatures of members with unmanaged conflicts of interest in respect of a particular country.”.
“The application of this code shall be a matter for the Assembly. Guidance of all matters covered by this code of conduct and situations which may arise from its application may be sought from the Secretary General of the Parliamentary Assembly”.
|
Interest |
Likelihood of conflict |
Potential remedial action |
|---|---|---|
|
A parliamentarian who is a former police officer seeks appointment as rapporteur on law enforcement matters. |
No actual conflict, unless very specific circumstances apply (e.g. if looking into a matter where the rapporteur is a close contact of those involved in matters under investigation). Any perceived conflict can normally be addressed through transparency and declaring. |
Transparency (e.g. declare past expertise and experience; declare any close contacts (if applicable) relevant to any matters that are the focus of the report). Only in rare circumstances would further remedial action be required – to be discussed with the Council of Europe Ethics Officer (hereafter “the Ethics Officer) and the secretariat. |
|
A parliamentarian who is a lawyer or judge being appointed as rapporteur on a report relating to the profession of lawyer, or to the functioning of the justice system. |
No actual conflict, unless very specific circumstances apply (e.g. if the report covers a case or matter that they were previously involved in as a lawyer or judge). Any perceived conflict can normally be addressed through transparency and declaring |
Transparency (e.g. declare past expertise and experience; declare involvement in any related cases or matters; declare any close contacts (if applicable) relevant to any matters that are the focus of the report). Only in rare circumstances would further remedial action be required – to be discussed with the Ethics Officer and the secretariat |
|
A member who is a medical professional seeks appointment as a rapporteur for a report relating to healthcare in general or a report within their specific field of medical expertise. |
No actual conflict, unless very specific circumstances apply (e.g. if the report involves promoting a particular institution in which the individual has a professional or business interest). Any perceived conflict can normally be addressed through transparency and declaring. |
Transparency (e.g. declare past expertise and experience; declare any relevant professional or business interests; declare any close contacts (if applicable) relevant to any matters that are the focus of the report). Only in rare circumstances would further remedial action be required – to be discussed with the Ethics Officer and the secretariat. |
|
A member who has significant financial interest (whether controlling shares, or adviser) in a company advising on artificial intelligence seeks appointment as chair of the sub-committee on artificial intelligence. |
There is a potential conflict of interest depending on the topic covered in sub-committee Perceived conflicts can normally be addressed through transparency and declaring, as well as recusal if certain topics arise on the agenda of the sub-committee. |
Transparency (e.g. declare business and financial interests; and any close contacts (if applicable) relevant to any matters. In the interests of full transparency, it could be necessary to do this both in the written declaration and orally when relevant matters arise in the work of the sub-committee. Recusal if particular topics so require, such that the sub-committee chair would stand aside to let the first vice-chair take the chair for those items – in order to demonstrate objectivity (even if the conflict was only potential or perceived). It could be useful to ensure clarity as to when and how to deploy remedial action– to be discussed with the Ethics Officer and the secretariat. |
|
A member from a country involved in a conflict, seeks a role that could touch on matters relating to that conflict. e.g. a member from Armenia seeks to be appointed as rapporteur for a report relating to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. e.g. a Ukrainian member seeks to be appointed rapporteur on a report relating to the Russian Federation’s war of aggression against Ukraine. |
There is a potential, perceived and likely actual risk of a conflict of interests. |
It could depend on the exact circumstances, and the first step in any conflict analysis is transparency and to declare and interests and to seek advice (e.g. from the Ethics Officer and the secretariat). However, bearing in mind the duties on a rapporteur of objectivity and neutrality, for example, it seems unlikely that such a rapporteur could be considered to be sufficiently removed from the situation so as to remove all risks of criticism of having a conflict of interest or a lack of objectivity. The appointment of such a rapporteur therefore could risk undermining the reputation of the Assembly in respect of that report. |
|
A member seeking to be appointed as rapporteur for a country-specific report (e.g. in the Monitoring Committee) or on an ad hoc committee for the observation of elections in a given country, where they or a family member has close ties to the country. For example: e.g. A member whose wife has a representative role on behalf of Türkiye seeking appointment as co-rapporteur for Türkiye in the Monitoring Committee. |
There is a potential, perceived and perhaps an actual conflict of interests. |
It could depend on the exact circumstances, and the first step in any conflict analysis is transparency and to declare and interests and to seek advice (e.g. from the Ethics Officer and the secretariat). However, bearing in mind the duties on a rapporteur of objectivity and neutrality, it seems unlikely that such a rapporteur could be considered to be sufficiently removed from the situation so as to rule out all risks of criticism of having a conflict of interest or a lack of objectivity. The appointment of such a rapporteur therefore could risk undermining the reputation of the Assembly in respect of that report. |
|
A member whose partner is Serbian is seeking appointment as co-rapporteur in respect of Serbia in the Monitoring Committee. |
There is a potential or perceived conflict of interest, which can be largely managed through transparency. |
Transparency (e.g. declare nationality of partner and any relevant links of the member and/or their close connections). Only in specific circumstances (e.g. if the partner and/or close connections have specific politically active positions in Serbia) would further remedial action be required – to be discussed with the Ethics Officer and the secretariat. |
|
A member whose daughter owns property in Romania seeking appointment as co-rapporteur for Romania in the Monitoring Committee. |
There is a potential or perceived conflict of interest, depending somewhat one the scale of the property interest, which can be largely managed through transparency. |
Transparency (e.g. declare daughter’s ownership of property and any other related risks). Only in rare circumstances (e.g. if there were efforts to link the daughter’s property or business activities in Romania to the work of the report) would further remedial action be required – to be discussed with the Ethics Officer and the secretariat. It would be important that there be no explicit or implicit links made between the two interests by any interlocutors otherwise action would need to be taken. |
|
A member whose son-in-law owns a business in Albania seeking appointment as co-rapporteur for Albania in the Monitoring Committee. |
There is a potential or perceived conflict of interest, depending somewhat one the scale of the business interest, which can be largely managed through transparency. |
Transparency (e.g. declare son-in-law’s business interests and any other related risks). Only in rare circumstances (e.g. if there were efforts to link the son-in-law’s business activities in Albania to the work of the report) would further remedial action be required – to be discussed with the Ethics Officer and the Secretariat. It would be important that there be no explicit or implicit links made between the two interests by any interlocutors otherwise action would need to be taken. |
|
A member whose husband is Polish, who wishes to chair an ad hoc committee for the election observation in Poland. |
There is a potential or perceived conflict of interest, which can be largely managed through transparency. |
Transparency (e.g. declare nationality of husband/partner and any relevant links of the member and/or their close connections). Only in specific circumstances (e.g. if the husband/partner and/or close connections have specific politically active positions in Poland) would further remedial action be required – to be discussed with the Ethics Officer and the secretariat. |
|
A member of Georgian origin who wishes to be part of an ad hoc committee for election observation in Georgia. |
There is a potential, perceived and perhaps an actual conflict of interests. |
It depends on the exact circumstances, and the extent of the links. The first step in any conflict analysis is transparency and to declare any interests and to seek advice (e.g. from the Ethics Officer and the secretariat). However, bearing in mind the prohibition on members “observing elections in their own country” (paragraph 13 of the guidelines on the observation of elections by the Parliamentary Assembly) this prohibition should cover nationals and those with close ties, but not those who, for example, merely have a historic genealogical link to a country. The appointment of a member with close links could be seen to undermine the objectivity of a mission, and could therefore risk undermining the reputation of the Assembly in respect of that mission. Advice should be sought from the Ethics Officer and/or the secretariat. |
|
A French member who is a dual national of Moldova seeks appointment on an ad hoc committee for election observation in Moldova. |
There is a potential, perceived and perhaps an actual conflict of interests. |
The first step in any conflict analysis is transparency and to declare any interests and to seek advice (e.g. from the Ethics Officer and the secretariat). However, bearing in mind the prohibition on members “observing elections in their own country” (paragraph 13 of the guidelines on the observation of elections by the Parliamentary Assembly) this prohibition should cover nationals and those with close ties, but not those who, for example, merely have a less direct link to a country. The appointment of a member who is a national of that country could be seen to undermine the objectivity of a mission, and could therefore risk undermining the reputation of the Assembly in respect of that mission. Advice should be sought from the Ethics Officer and/or the secretariat. |
|
A chairperson of a committee realises that a matter specific to their country of nationality arises in a discussion in committee. |
There is a potential, perceived and perhaps an actual conflict of interests. |
Transparency is always the first recourse, – not only through the written declaration of interests, but also orally in committee. If the matter relates solely to that chairperson’s country of nationality, then the correct approach is for the chair to recuse themselves for that item and to be replaced by the vice-chair. This is important to demonstrate objectivity (even if the conflict was only potential or perceived). Recusal could be particularly important (i) if the matter relates solely to that country; (ii) if the matter relates to a conflict (or post-conflict situation) concerning that country; or (iii) if the matter is highly politically controversial. A mere glancing reference to a given country, amongst others, and if the matter is not highly polemical need not require recusal for that item. Guidance can be sought, as required, from the Ethics Officer and/or the secretariat. |
|
A chairperson of a committee realises that a matter specific to their partner’s country of nationality arises in a debate. |
There is a potential or perceived conflict of interest, which can be largely managed through transparency. |
Transparency (e.g. declare nationality of partner and any relevant links of the member and/or their close connections) – ideally both in writing and orally if relevant matters arise. Only in specific circumstances (e.g. if the husband/partner and/or close connections have specific politically active positions in that country, or if the issue is highly polemical or related to a conflict) would further remedial action be required, such as recusal for that item. Guidance can be sought, as required, from the Ethics Officer and/or the secretariat. |