Order, hon members! I wish to thank Mr Swart for alerting me that he was going to raise this matter. I have, however, studied the issue in preparation for this debate. In the view of matters raised publicly with regard to whether certain members of this House should participate in proceedings when the National Prosecuting Authority Amendment Bill and the South African Police Service Amendment Bill are considered, I am convinced that I have no statutory or Rule basis to instruct any duly elected member of this House, under these circumstances, not to participate in the debate. Conflict of interest in the parliamentary context is ordinarily presumed to refer to a direct interest in a matter before the House. It must refer to a personal or private financial or business interest. It is a well- established practice that in order to operate as a disqualification, a member's interest must be immediate and personal and not merely of a general or remote character. It must not be an interest that is shared with the rest of the public or that relates to a matter of policy.
Members are sent to Parliament to represent their constituencies, who must not be disenfranchised so lightly. So, the House should not unnecessarily be deprived of their opinion.
It can be argued that a general bias exists in almost everything a Member of Parliament does in the course of his or her work. Under the circumstances, I cannot instruct any member to leave the House during the consideration of these Bills. Therefore, the debate continues. [Applause.]
I now call upon the hon Minister of Safety and Security. [Interjections.]