"The BSJA Executive Board has taken on board points raised
at the AGM held on the 1st October 2003 and has drafted a new
Statement of Principles and Code of Conduct for those who serve
the Association as a member of the Executive Board or other Committees,
to ensure they are held to the highest standards of conduct for
the benefit of the Association and its members.
BSJA
Statement Of Principles & Code of Conduct
The
BSJA is the governing body of show jumping in the UK, whose mission
is to encourage and improve show jumping at all levels. Those
who are elected, appointed or co-opted to serve the BSJA are held
to the highest standards of conduct. In particular they assume
an obligation to subordinate individual interests to the interests
of the BSJA and to behave in such a way that trust and confidence
in the integrity of the Association are enhanced.
However,
those elected or appointed to serve the BSJA on the Board or Committees
will almost inevitably have achieved success in equestrianism,
whether as competitor, official, trainer, horse-owner or through
other interests such as putting on shows. Since these activities
will continue during their term of office, the possibility of
a real or apparent conflict of interest arises.
While no set of guidelines can guarantee acceptable behaviour,
the principles, which guide behaviour of Board and Committee members,
are:
1. Full and complete disclosure of any real or apparent conflict
of interest
2. Non-participation in any vote or decision wherever any personal
or family gain is a possibility. This equally applies to BSJA
dealings with any Company in which individuals may have an interest.
3. No unfair advantage should be gained over other members of
the BSJA by virtue of membership of the Board or of a Committee.
4. Breach of these principles will result in the member having
to resign from the committee in question and or pay compensation
to the BSJA and in the case of a Board Member may give rise to
a fine under the Companies Act
These
principles are covered both by Company Law and by Clause 4 of
the BSJA's Memorandum and Articles of Association and will be
strictly adhered to.
Compliance is founded on the individual's own sense of integrity,
but is also based on public disclosure and scrutiny of both their
interests and actions. The BSJA wishes to adopt best practice
in this area and has therefore now decided to adopt the following
Code of Conduct
PTO
.
1.
All individuals who wish to participate as members of the BSJA
Board or Committees or sub-committees must confirm annually, in
writing, knowledge of these principles and will be required to
complete a Conflict of Interest, Disclosure Statement at the beginning
of each year listing all relevant interests of their own or their
family.
2.
These interests will be disclosed by candidates when seeking election
and subsequently at the beginning of January each year. This may
influence who is appointed to certain Committees where an apparent
conflict arises. Should such an interest arise during the year,
then the Board or Committee member must notify the Chief Executive
in writing and formally declare the interest at the next Board
and/or relevant Committee meeting being attended
3.
Whenever a contract or decision arises on the Board or in Committee
in which a member has a potential conflict of interest, the material
facts surrounding such interest must be disclosed in good faith
before the start of any discussion of the matter. Unless otherwise
specifically agreed by the remainder of the Board or Committee,
the member will leave the meeting while the remainder of the Board
or Committee considers and decides on the matter. In this situation
neither the vote of the involved member nor of any direct family
members on the Committee shall be counted.
4.
The procedure adopted by all Committees will be changed to routinely
consider whether any conflicts of interest may arise on agenda
items at the start of each meeting.
5.
In the event that any member breaches this Statement of Principles
and Code of Conduct, the Executive Board will decide either to
ask the member to cease to be a member of that Committee or to
compensate the Association for the amount of financial benefit
the member obtained. Board members will also be liable to a fine
under The Companies Act.
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