Lay Member

Positions
- 1

Band / Grade
- Various

Salary
- £300 per day

Contract Type
- Agency, Freelance

Contract Length
- The appointment will be for a fixed term of five years. The appointment is not renewable.

Working Pattern
- Variable

Location
- On-site (Parliamentary Estate)

Leave entitlement
- Starting at 30 days per annum, pro-rata

Closing Date

3rd January 2025 at 23:55

Job Description

**Speaker’s Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority - House of Commons**:
**IPSA**

IPSA was established by the Parliamentary Standards Act 2009 as an independent authority responsible for both the regulation and administration of MPs’ staffing and business costs and for paying the salaries of MPs and their staff. IPSA started operations at the General Election in May 2010, at which point it became responsible for the majority of MPs’ business costs. Since 2011, IPSA has also had responsibility for setting MPs’ pay and pensions.

**The Speaker’s Committee**

The Speaker’s Committee was established at the same time as the IPSA by the Parliamentary Standards Act 2009.

The Speaker’s Committee has two statutory functions:

- To agree IPSA’s annual estimate of resources before it is agreed formally by the House of Commons; and
- To agree the Speaker’s selection, on the basis of fair and open competition, of the chair and board members of IPSA before their approval by the House of Commons.

The Lay Members were added to the Committee as a result of a 2009 report on MPs’ expenses and allowances by the Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL). The role of the lay member is to:

- Bring an external view to the deliberations of the Speaker’s Committee, drawing on their experience from different walks of life;
- Reflect the growing practice in self-regulatory bodies to accept lay membership as a means of widening their horizon, increasing their experience base and strengthening their legitimacy with the public; and
- Promote greater transparency and independence in the Speaker’s Committee’s operations.

Appointments are for a non-renewable fixed term not exceeding five years. The current Lay Members are Peter Blausten, Tina Fahm and Theresa Middleton. The current recruitment is occasioned by the forthcoming departure of Peter Blausten at the end of his fixed term in January 2025.

In addition to the lay members, the Committee comprises:

- Three ex-officio members: the Speaker as Chair, the Leader of the House (Rt Hon. Lucy Powell MP) and the Chair of the Standards Committee (Alberto Costa MP); and
- Five MPs appointed by the House: currently Marie Goldman MP, Leigh Ingham MP, Gordon McKee MP, Charlotte Nichols MP and Rt Hon. Jesse Norman MP.

**A message from the Speaker of the House of Commons**

IPSA is the world’s first fully independent regulator of MPs’ financial remuneration. It regulates and administers the staffing and business costs and determines the pay of 650 elected MPs and administers the payroll of their 3,500 staff.

The Speaker’s Committee has responsibilities clearly defined in statute in relation to the governance of IPSA. SCIPSA supports the recruitment of IPSA board members on merit and on the basis of fair and open competition. It also scrutinises and challenges the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of IPSA’s funding requests.

The Lay Members play a vital part within this framework. They bring to the Committee their considerable knowledge and expertise in other fields. As full voting members of SCIPSA, they enhance the Committee’s authority and bring an independent perspective to the Committee’s work. Their contribution is greatly valued by me, by my fellow MPs on the Committee and by those across the House.

IPSA is currently in the middle of a transformation programme. Within this context, SCIPSA has an increasingly important role in ensuring IPSA discharges its functions effectively, balancing a strong regulatory framework with effective customer service, and in overseeing the appointment of talented people to the IPSA board. We are looking for a lay member who can bring their experience and expertise to help us in this work. Previous non executive experience is not essential.

I hope that, as you read the papers in this pack, you will see what a fascinating and crucial role the Lay Members play.
- Rt Hon Sir Lindsay Hoyle MP_
- Speaker_

**Role specification**:
**Purpose**

Participate as a full voting member of the Speaker’s Committee for IPSA, contributing an expert understanding and experience of public, private or not-for-profit sector management and governance.

**Description of Duties**

Expertly examine and as appropriate challenge:

- the proposed estimate of resources presented by the IPSA Board, and
- proposed appointments to the IPSA Board.

[As required, to sit on selection panels for appointments to the IPSA Board.]

Make judgments and decisions, taking into account:

- the operational needs of IPSA, the House and MPs;
-