Former chief minister formally reprimanded

A code of conduct panel judged Deputy St Pier broke the States code of conduct in 2022

Guernsey's former Chief Minister Gavin St Pier has been formally reprimanded by the States for breaking the code of conduct.

An independent panel judged St Pier had broken rules by naming Dr Sandie Bohin in a speech to the States Assembly as one of the clinicians involved in an investigation into safeguarding. The investigation found no wrongdoing.

St Pier appealed against the judgement but that appeal was thrown out earlier this year.

A total of 32 States members voted to support the proposal to formally reprimand St Pier. He said the process "dragged on" for two and a half years which he described as "absurd".

'Missed opportunity'

He said: "Parliamentary privilege is an ancient and key principle of parliamentary democracy.

"It exists to enable truth to be spoken to power without repercussion.

"An ‘abuse of privilege process’ exists to discourage elected members from abusing their privilege.

"It was never intended that the code of conduct process be used in respect of what is said in the Assembly so I am pleased that rules have now been changed.

"This means the right to free speech in the Assembly is protected and no other member of the Assembly will ever be subject to the double jeopardy of simultaneous complaints under two different processes for the same words spoken."

He added: "The debate was a missed opportunity for the States to acknowledge the trauma experienced by too many families, and accordingly apologise to them."

'Reckless and irresponsible'

The panel considering the complaint found some of the statements in St Pier's speech were "seriously and fundamentally misleading".

The three complaints made against him were from the British Medical Association (BMA), the Medical Specialist Group and Dr Bohin.

In May 2023 St Pier was cleared of an abuse of parliamentary privilege in relation to the comments.

During the debate on the report from the States Assembly and Constitution Committee (SACC) into whether to formally reprimand St Pier, former Chief Minister Peter Ferbrache said he wanted to "give justice to an eminent professional".

Ferbrache said he believed St Pier's conduct was "reckless and irresponsible" and he should be suspended from the States and he supported the recommendation of the independent panel to formally reprimand St Pier.

SACC President Carl Meerveld said the process to get to this stage had taken "too long" and he apologised on behalf of his committee.