Michael Matheson will lose part of his salary for 54 days for racking up the bill on his parliamentary phone.
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Former health secretary Michael Matheson has been suspended from the Scottish Parliament for 27 sitting days after racking up a near-£11,000 data roaming bill on his iPad , a Holyrood Committee has announced.
The Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee also said he will lose his salary for 54 days.
The SNP Member of Scottish Parliament was found to have breached the code of conduct for MSPs by attempting to use expenses and office costs to cover the bill.
Mr Matheson’s ban exceeds the expected 10 days that was speculated he would be given, with the longest ban ever given out by Holyrood authorities being one month.
The one month ban was given to SNP MSP Mark MacDonald as a result of a probe into allegations of sexual harassment, as well as four Scottish Socialist Party MSPs who held a protest in the chamber during First Minister’s Questions.
Mr Matheson had initially offered to cover the costs himself, revealing that the bill had been as a result of his children using the device as a Wi-Fi hotspot to watch football during a holiday in Morocco.
Martin Whitfield, the head of the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee, said: “Mr Matheson has set out that since becoming aware of the circumstances in which the data usage occurred, he has been motivated by seeking to protect his family.
“The committee acknowledges the impact of the significant media and other intrusions which took place on Mr Matheson and his family.
“However, the obligations all members have under the code, the expenses scheme and relevant policies are of paramount importance in upholding the integrity of the scheme and the ethical standards framework.
“Any failure to meet those obligations has an adverse impact on the reputation of the expenses scheme, members and the Parliament as a whole.”
The former minister denied that there had been any inappropriate use of the device, when pressed by journalists. However, after months of pressure, Mr Matheson stood down as health secretary in February.
He could now face pressure on his position as an MSP, as it was earlier speculated that this could happen if any ban at all is given.
However, the Scottish Parliament does not have a method of effectively sacking a member in the same way that Westminster does.
In England, a suspension of 10 sitting days is enough to spark a recall petition, which allows constituents to remove an MP if 10% sign the document.
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HeadlineFormer Scottish Health Secretary suspended over £11,000 iPad bill
Short HeadlineFormer Scottish Health Secretary suspended over £11k iPad bill
StandfirstThe former Health Secretary for Scotland, Michael Matheson, tried to use expenses to pay a data-roaming bill.
Former health secretary Michael Matheson has been suspended from the Scottish Parliament for 27 sitting days after racking up a near-£11,000 data roaming bill on his iPad , a Holyrood Committee has announced.
The Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee also said he will lose his salary for 54 days.
The SNP Member of Scottish Parliament was found to have breached the code of conduct for MSPs by attempting to use expenses and office costs to cover the bill.
Mr Matheson’s ban exceeds the expected 10 days that was speculated he would be given, with the longest ban ever given out by Holyrood authorities being one month.
The one month ban was given to SNP MSP Mark MacDonald as a result of a probe into allegations of sexual harassment, as well as four Scottish Socialist Party MSPs who held a protest in the chamber during First Minister’s Questions.
Mr Matheson had initially offered to cover the costs himself, revealing that the bill had been as a result of his children using the device as a Wi-Fi hotspot to watch football during a holiday in Morocco.
Martin Whitfield, the head of the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee, said: “Mr Matheson has set out that since becoming aware of the circumstances in which the data usage occurred, he has been motivated by seeking to protect his family.
“The committee acknowledges the impact of the significant media and other intrusions which took place on Mr Matheson and his family.
“However, the obligations all members have under the code, the expenses scheme and relevant policies are of paramount importance in upholding the integrity of the scheme and the ethical standards framework.
“Any failure to meet those obligations has an adverse impact on the reputation of the expenses scheme, members and the Parliament as a whole.”
The former minister denied that there had been any inappropriate use of the device, when pressed by journalists. However, after months of pressure, Mr Matheson stood down as health secretary in February.
He could now face pressure on his position as an MSP, as it was earlier speculated that this could happen if any ban at all is given.
However, the Scottish Parliament does not have a method of effectively sacking a member in the same way that Westminster does.
In England, a suspension of 10 sitting days is enough to spark a recall petition, which allows constituents to remove an MP if 10% sign the document.
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