Intimidation in public life

That this House recognises that intimidation experienced by those in public life poses a threat to the diversity, integrity, and vibrancy of representative democracy in the UK and that tackling intimidation is a cross-party issue; notes that abuse and intimidation know no political boundaries; welcomes the ongoing work on developing a joint standard of conduct for all political parties, which was one of the key recommendations in the Intimidation in Public Life Report published by the Committee on Standards in Public Life (CSPL) in December 2017; further welcomes the partnership between the CSPL and the Jo Cox Foundation to expedite this work; calls on all party leaders to commit in principle to the joint standard of conduct and to undertake to uphold the joint standard of conduct alongside their parties’ existing internal frameworks; further calls on all party leaders to do all in their power to facilitate mutual agreement of the terms of the joint standard of conduct before the next general election; further notes that polls show that the British public reject the current toxicity of discourse and debate; and believes that a common, cross-party commitment to the joint standard of conduct will send a powerful, positive and hopeful message at a time when it is sorely needed.