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Written question asked by Cat Smith (Labour) on Wednesday, 5 September 2018, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 10 September 2018 (named day). It was answered by Chloe Smith (Conservative) on Monday, 10 September 2018 on behalf of the Cabinet Office.

General Election 2017: Returning Officers

Question

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many and what proportion of returning officers spent in excess of their maximum recoverable amount at the 2017 general election.

Answer

The Cabinet Office is responsible for the settlement of election expenses claims in respect of constituencies in England and Wales. Data for constituencies in Northern Ireland and Scotland is not available to the Cabinet Office at present.

The number of claims that exceeded the maximum recoverable amount in England and Wales at the 2017 UK parliamentary general election was 236. This is 41% of the claims for consideration by the Cabinet Office. The Elections Claims Unit at the Cabinet Office is scrutinising these claims to ensure that the expenses claimed were reasonable and necessary for the efficient and effective delivery of the poll as is required by law. This could result in some claims being settled at an amount that is less than originally claimed and below the maximum recoverable amount for that constituency and therefore the overall number of claims that are over spent could change.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
170903
Session
2017-19
Subjects
Expenditure Returning officers General Election 2017
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk