With reference to the article published yesterday regarding the Office of the Speaker, I would like to hereby clarify a number of issues.

With regard to engagement of staff the Office of the Speaker still follows the procedures applicable to Public Service employment, so much so that recourse to the Public Service Commission and to the People’s and Standards Division is made in connection with ongoing selection procedures.

This is being done as this Office believes that autonomy places on it a greater burden of responsibility; in this respect it chose to abide by already set rules that ensure correctness.

With regard to the purchase of the mementos, one should note that the Office proceeded with utmost transparency and correctness as a notice was published in the Government Gazette of December 2, 2016 (Call for Quotations for the supply of HOR Cufflinks complete with Gift Box HOR/Q6/2016).

The specifications of the requested product were made available for public inspection, and the relevant authority was also consulted on the applicable procedure at each stage of)the process.

With regard to the prestige of these gifts it is being noted that it is not the first time that such a product is used in inter-parliamentary visits.

Furthermore, one has to take into account that in a considerable number of institutions there are rules in place which prohibit the exchange of gifts beyond a set value, which is an approach that this Office is proposing to be included in the code of ethics annexed to the Bill on Standards in Public Life.