Misconduct in Public Office
The Law Commission has recommended reforms to the outdated and unclear offence of misconduct in public office offence.
Applies to England and Wales
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The Law Commission published reforms to outdated and unclear laws governing misconduct in public office on 4 December 2020. The reforms would introduce two new statutory offences to replace the ancient common law offence, provide greater clarity, and target the most serious forms of misconduct in public office.
There has been an increase in the number of prosecutions for misconduct in public office in recent years, rising from single figures in the early 2000s to averaging more than 80 per year since 2006. In 2018 (the last available figures), there were 95 prosecutions.
The current common law offence of misconduct in public office has existed for hundreds of years. However, as the number of prosecutions has risen in recent decades, so have the calls to reform the law. The most commonly expressed concern is that the offence lacks clarity and precision. This creates the potential for misuse and injustice, and risks it being used as a “catch all” offence, in place of more targeted statutory offences.
The Law Commission’s recommendations, if enacted, would:
- Replace the outdated and confusing misconduct in public office offence with two offences – an offence of corruption in public office, and an offence of breach of duty in public office. These new offences would make the law clearer and easier to follow.
- Focus the criminal law on the worst forms of misconduct, leaving space for other consequences such as disciplinary proceedings in less serious cases.
- Set out a list of positions that constitute “public office” for the offences. With the line between public and private sectors sometimes blurred, this will provide greater clarity and certainty as to the positions covered by the offences.
- Require the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions for the prosecution of the offences, to ensure that the right cases are prosecuted, and to prevent vexatious private prosecutions.
Find out more, and receive accessible versions of the report on the Law Commission website.