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Political Parties and Elections Bill

Amendment 119 119: After Clause 13, insert the following new Clause— "Qualifying expenditure In the Representation of the People Act 1983 (c. 2) ("the 1983 Act"), after section 75A there is inserted— "75B Qualifying expenditure (1) For the purposes of this Part, "qualifying expenditure" shall include expenditure, whether or not intended to promote the candidacy of a particular person at a particular election, on— (a) party political and election broadcasts, including agency fees, design costs and any other costs in connection with preparing or producing such broadcasts; (b) advertising of any nature (whatever the medium used) including agency fees, design costs and any other costs in connection with preparing or producing, distributing or otherwise disseminating such advertising or anything incorporating such advertising and intended to be distributed for the purpose of disseminating it; (c) unsolicited material sent to electors, whether or not addressed to them by name (including newsletters or similar publications issued by or on behalf of the party with a view to giving electors in a particular electoral area information about the opinions or activities of, or other personal information relating to, their elected representatives or existing or prospective candidates), including design costs and any other costs in connection with preparing, producing and distributing such material, including the cost of postage, but not including unsolicited material sent to party members; (d) any manifesto or other document setting out the party’s policies, including design costs and other costs in connection with preparing or producing or distributing or otherwise disseminating any such document; (e) market research or canvassing, whether conducted in person or on the telephone or by any other method, for the purpose of ascertaining polling intentions or for the purpose of increasing the support of that party or reducing the support of other parties; (f) the provision of any services or facilities in connection with press conferences or other dealings with the media; (g) transport (by any means) of persons to any place or places with a view to obtaining publicity for the party, its policies, its representatives or its views; (h) rallies and other events, including public meetings (but not annual or other party conferences) organised so as to obtain publicity for the party, its policies, its representatives or its views, including costs incurred in connection with the attendance of persons at such events, the hire of premises for the purposes of such events or the provision of goods, services or facilities at them; (i) subsidies or grants to other persons or bodies designed to increase support for the party, its representatives or views, or to decrease support for any other party, its representatives or views. (2) Any expenditure of more than £100 per year by any person to benefit a registered party shall count as qualifying expenditure by that registered party, but time donated on a voluntary basis shall not count as such expenditure. (3) Expenditure by a registered party on remuneration or allowance of staff, whether permanent or temporary, shall count as qualifying expenditure unless the member of staff concerned works exclusively on matters not connected with the activities mentioned in subsection (1)(a) to (h). (4) The following shall not count as qualifying expenditure— (a) any expenses in respect of any property, services or facilities so far as those expenses fall to be met out of public funds; (b) any expenses incurred in respect of an individual by way of travelling expenses (by any means of transport) or in providing for his accommodation or other personal needs to the extent that the expenses are paid by the individual from his own resources and are not reimbursed to him.""