Oversight Committee finds Greater London Authority Code of Conduct has “potential gaps” after reviewing findings of investigation into conduct of Boris Johnson while London Mayor

The Greater London Authority’s Oversight Committee has concluded that the GLA’s Code of Conduct must address non-pecuniary interests and said a case could be made for reviewing the Code on a yearly basis following an investigation into Boris Johnson’s conduct as Mayor of London.

Commenting on the report, ‘Governance of Trade Missions and the GLA Code of Conduct’, Caroline Pidgeon AM, former Chair of the GLA Oversight Committee, said “it is clear the Code has potential gaps and areas where strengthening is needed”.

A round of governance investigations at GLA kicked off after the Sunday Times published a story in 2019 that alleged Boris Johnson failed to declare a series of potential conflicts of interest over a friendship with American businesswoman Jennifer Arcuri while he was Mayor of London.

Following the Sunday Times’ story, the GLA’s monitoring officer recorded a conduct matter against Johnson and referred the matter to the Independent Office for Police Complaints (IOPC). The IOPC concluded that it was unnecessary to criminally investigate Johnson for misconduct.

The IOPC did, however, note that there was some evidence that Boris Johnson was in an intimate relationship with Jennifer Arcuri during some of the relevant period.

Following the conclusion of the IOPC’s investigation, the committee decided to launch an investigation into the Code and the governance processes of London & Partners, a business growth and destination agency which is part-funded by the GLA.

The committee also decided to investigate processes around overseas trade missions and the payment of sponsorship money at L&P.

Arcuri received sponsorship money from L&P and travelled to South Africa, Southeast Asia, New York, and Israel on overseas trade missions arranged by the authority and L&P.

The report, published this week (26 September), considered the recommendations of the IOPC review, the independent review of L&P’s processes, alongside the findings of the committee’s own investigations concerning the Code.

Based on its findings, the committee made eleven recommendations.

These included a recommendation that an upcoming review of the Code “must address non-pecuniary interests as part of the rules and guidance”, with a particular focus on ensuring the guidance reduces the risk of misinterpretation of the rules.

In addition, a recommendation that the review of the Code draws on the significant recent work by the Committee on Standards in Public Life and the Local Government Association into codes of conduct to ensure a code that is fit for purpose.

Five further suggestions included:

1. A recommendation that the review of the Code addresses the use of social media as part of the rules and guidance, including how often the Code should be reviewed to ensure its rules are up to date;
2. An acknowledgement by the committee that L&P’s processes before 2016 required improvement and that changes have been made, and a recommendation to continue regular reviews of the new processes to ensure they remain fit for purpose;
3. A recommendation that L&P address the risk that undue pressure from senior GLA officials and the Mayor undermines its processes and controls;
4. A recommendation that the GLA consider the possible range of sanctions for Members for breaches of the Code while recognising the reasons for the difference in approach to staff; and
5. A recommendation for consideration of a review function for the London Assembly and the Mayor that ensures that the complaints process for breaches of the Code is working effectively while also ensuring that individual complaints can be dealt with in a timely and efficient manner. This might include setting up a GLA Standards Committee, the committee noted.

Caroline Pidgeon AM, said: "L&P promotes London across the world. It receives significant public money, and the public expects accountability around how its money is spent.

"While the IOPC investigation into the allegations against Boris Johnson found no evidence of a criminal offence, it did conclude that there was some evidence that Boris Johnson was in an intimate relationship with Jennifer Arcuri during some of the relevant period. If he was in such a relationship, failing to declare this as a conflict of interest could have constituted a breach of the broader Nolan Principles, the ethical standards those working in the public sector are expected to adhere to.”

She added that the committee found the evidence it heard from Jennifer Arcuri “both frank and honest”.

"It is this that prompted our desire to ensure the GLA's Code of Conduct is fit for purpose,” Pidgeon stated. 

“We welcome the work underway in this area -- but there is a case for a yearly review of the Code of Conduct.”

Pidgeon continued: "We are satisfied that since 2015, significant changes have been made in the process for deciding who goes on trade missions, with this now organised through the Mayor's International Business Programme (MIBP).

"The Committee does, however, consider that there is a case for regular reviews of process and adherence to the recommendations."

Adam Carey