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Members' Staff Verification Office (MSVO)
Last updated 29 November 2011
Added 1 April 2010
MSVO Questionnaire updated. Click here for the new version (Dec 2011).
Update 7 September 2011:
Additional step for identity verification of
Peers’ staff
From 5 September the Members’ Staff Verification Office (MSVO) will carry
out a Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) check alongside the
existing security checking procedure by the Pass Office for new Peers’
staff. The new process is not retrospective.
The BPSS check has been running in the House of Commons since May 2010. It
will provide a layer of identity verification, and confirmation of the legal
right to work in the UK, that is difficult for individual Peers, as the
employer, to achieve. The BPSS check will address the problems of identity
theft, illegal working and the general deception facing all employers
recruiting in the UK.
For more information about the process contact Guy Turner, Manager of the
MSVO, on 020 7219 3021 or
turnergl@parliament.uk.
Update 25 July 2011:
Relocation of the Members' Staff Verification Office (MSVO)
MSVO has relocated to the Palace in the Serjeant at Arms’ Office which can be accessed from Central Lobby past the Admission Order Office.
The move from 2 The Abbey Gardens will greatly improve accessibility for Members’ staff to the MSVO which carries out Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) pre-employment checks on staff of Members from both Houses and audits House contractors to ensure they carry out these checks on their employees.
The new
address for correspondence is:
Members’ Staff Verification Office,
Serjeant at Arms Directorate,
House of Commons,
London SW1A 0AA
Update 24 June 2011:
The Verification Questionnaire has been updated again. The latest one is dated June 2011 - now (29 Nov 2011)out of date. See latest here.
CHECKING IDENTITY: The Members’ Staff Verification Office (MSVO)
Following several high-profile cases of individuals attempting to use false identities to gain access to sensitive workplaces, including the Royal Household, the MSVO has been created to carry out Baseline Personnel Security Standard pre-employment checks on staff of Members and Peers. This means that checking procedures for all staff with access to the Parliamentary Estate and its IT network will be standardised.
The checks are relatively simple and verify the individual’s identity, right to work in the UK and employment /educational history for the past three years. New employees will be required to complete and return a Verification Questionnaire (VQ) and provide specific supporting documentation, such as a passport and utility bill.
It is worth noting that this activity is separate to the existing security measures which will continue and will not delay the issuing of a security pass. However, failure to comply with the new procedure will result in access to the Parliamentary Estate and its IT network being revoked and may lead to withdrawal of a job offer or even dismissal
The work of the MSVO commenced immediately after the 2010 General Election and all new staff employed by Members from that date have been subject to the new procedure. A follow on phase providing the same service to Peers’ staff will commence early in September 2011.
Further information on this subject can be found by accessing the MSVO page on the Parliamentary Intranet, which can be found at http://intranet.parliament.uk/access-buildings/access-security/msvo/.
A word from the W4MP job ads section
At the request of the MSVO we are adding the following
statement to all ads placed by MPs with effect from 7 May 2010:
Upon appointment you will be required to comply with the Baseline Personnel Security Standard, undertaken by the Members’ Staff Verification Office (MSVO). See www.w4mp.org/html/msvo/main.asp for further information.
