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("( ) References to a permissible donor falling within section 49(2) do not include a registered party.").
Page 142, line 27, at end insert--
("(aa) any sponsorship provided in relation to the recognised third party (as defined by paragraph 2A);").
Page 142, line 28, leave out ("a recognised third party or a person authorised to act on its behalf)") and insert ("or on behalf of the recognised third party)").
Page 142, line 30, after ("by") insert ("or on behalf of").
Page 142, leave out line 36.
Page 142, line 40, leave out sub-paragraph (2) and insert--
("(2) Where--
(a) any money or other property is transferred to a recognised third party pursuant to any transaction or arrangement involving the provision by or on behalf of the recognised third party of any property, services or facilities or other consideration of monetary value, and
(b) the total value in monetary terms of the consideration so provided by or on behalf of the recognised third party is less than the value of the money or (as the case may be) the market value of the property transferred,
the transfer of the money or property shall (subject to sub-paragraph (2B)) constitute a gift to the recognised third party for the purposes of sub-paragraph (1)(a).
(2A) In determining--
(a) for the purposes of sub-paragraph (2)(c), whether any money lent to a recognised third party is so lent otherwise than on commercial terms, or
(b) for the purposes of sub-paragraph (2)(d), whether any property, services or facilities provided for theuse or benefit of a recognised third party is or are so provided otherwise than on such terms,
regard shall be had to the total value in monetary terms of the consideration provided by or on behalf of the recognised third party in respect of the loan or the provision of the property, services or facilities.
(2B) Where (apart from this sub-paragraph) anything would be a donation both by virtue of sub-paragraph (1)(aa) and by virtue of any other provision of this paragraph, sub-paragraph (1)(aa) (together with paragraph 2A) shall apply in relation to it to the exclusion of the other provision of this paragraph.").
Page 142, line 44, after ("member") insert (", trustee").
Page 142, line 45, leave out second ("and") and insert ("or").
Page 143, line 8, at end insert--
2A.--(1) For the purposes of this Schedule sponsorship is provided in relation to a recognised third party if--
(a) any money or other property is transferred to the recognised third party or to any person for the benefit of the recognised third party, and
(b) the purpose (or one of the purposes) of the transfer is (or must, having regard to all the circumstances, reasonably be assumed to be)--
(i) to help the recognised third party with meeting, or to meet, to any extent any defined expenses incurred or to be incurred by or on behalf of the recognised third party, or
(ii) to secure that to any extent any such expenses are not so incurred.
(2) In sub-paragraph (1) "defined expenses" means expenses in connection with--
(a) any conference, meeting or other event organised by or on behalf of the recognised third party,
(b) the preparation, production or dissemination of any publication by or on behalf of the recognised third party, or
(c) any study or research organised by or on behalf of the recognised third party.
(3) The following do not, however, constitute sponsorship by virtue of sub-paragraph (1)--
(a) the making of any payment in respect of--
(i) any charge for admission to any conference, meeting or other event, or
(ii) the purchase price of, or any other charge for access to, any publication;
(b) the making of any payment in respect of the inclusion of an advertisement in any publication where thepayment is made at the commercial rate payable for the inclusion of such an advertisement in any such publication.
(4) The Secretary of State may by order made on the recommendation of the Commission amend sub-paragraph (2) or (3).
(5) In this paragraph "publication" means a publication made available in whatever form and by whatever means (whether or not to the public at large or any section of the public).").
[Amendments Nos. 219 and 220 not moved.]
Lord Bach moved Amendment No. 220A:
[Amendment No. 221 not moved.]
Lord Bach moved Amendment No. 221A:
Schedule 10, as amended, agreed to.
Clause 91 [Returns as to controlled expenditure]:
Lord Bach moved Amendments Nos. 221B and 221C:
Clause 91, as amended, agreed to.
Clause 94 [Declaration by responsible person as to return under section 91]:
Lord Bach moved Amendments Nos. 221D and 221E:
Clause 94, as amended, agreed to.
Clause 96 [Auditor's report on return]:
On Question, Whether Clause 96 shall stand part of the Bill?
Lord Bach: This group of amendments is concerned with controls on election and referendum publications. The amendments build on the existing Clauses 96 and 121 which we propose to replace by two new clauses. Therefore, when the time comes we shall oppose the Question that Clause 96 stand part of the Bill.
Before I turn to the detail of the changes made by the amendments, it may assist the Committee if I set out the purpose of the existing provisions in the Bill. Clauses 96 and 121 are modelled on Section 110 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 which requires the name and address of the printer and publisher of an election publication to be included on the face of the document. I do not suppose that there is a single Member of the Committee present tonight who has not faced a crisis of conscience or concern about the simple rule that I have just set out.
In the context of the Bill this requirement meets two objectives. First, where an advertisement is published which is designed to promote the election of a party or its candidates or a particular outcome in a referendum the electorate has a right to know who is behind the advertisement. In the case of an election, the fact that this or that organisation supports a particular party and is prepared to campaign vigorously in its favour may sway some people to vote one way or the other. The electorate should be able to make an informed judgment on such matters. For that purpose they need some basic information; namely, who has published a particular advertisement.
The second purpose of Clauses 96 and 121 is to assist the electoral commission with the enforcement of the controls on election and referendum expenditure. Advertising costs are likely to be one of the main expenses incurred by campaigners in an election or referendum. A requirement that the name and address of both the printer and publisher appear on any advertisement provides the commission with an immediate point of reference for further inquiries, should they be needed, as to the cost of the advertisement and the identity of the person or body on whose behalf it is published.
The need for both the electorate and the electoral commission to be properly informed about who is behind a publication is not restricted to publications which take the form of a printed document. Printed documents, be they posters, leaflets or newspaper advertisements, remain at present the dominant form of communication at elections, but they are no longer the only form of communication and the position may be vastly different in 10 or 20 years' time. At the time of the previous general election many Members of the
The three amendments are in many respects identical. I shall set out the key changes by reference to the new clause to be inserted by Amendment No. 243B. Subsections (2) to (5) of the new clause are concerned with printed documents. Subsection (2) sets out the relevant details to be included in any such document. As with the existing Clause 121, the relevant details include the name and address of the printer of the document. On reflection, we do not believe that it is apt to require the publisher's name and address on a printed document. It does not help the electorate or the electoral commission to know that an advertisement relating to a referendum that appears in, say, The Times has been published by Times Newspapers Ltd. What the electorate and the commission need to know is who placed the advertisement and on whose behalf.
Subsections (3) to (5) set out where the relevant details are to appear on different types of printed documents. Subsection (3) is concerned with single-sided documents such as a poster. Subsection (4) deals with printed documents that consist of two or more sides, such as a leaflet or referendum address. Subsection (5) is concerned with advertisements in newspapers and periodicals. Subsections (6) and (7) enable the requirements in respect of publications other than printed documents to be prescribed by regulations. We have opted for a regulation-making power as we need flexibility to adjust the requirements as new methods of publishing referendum material come on stream in years to come. As with other regulation-making powers in the Bill, this one is exercisable only after consultation with the electoral commission.
The new clause to be inserted by Amendment No. 280C and the new Section 110 of the 1983 Act to be inserted by Amendment No. 259P both make similar provision in respect of election material. The new clause to replace Clause 96 is inserted in Part X rather than Part VI of the Bill. This reflects the fact that the new clause is designed to apply to election publications issued by registered parties and third parties. As the Bill stands there is no equivalent to Clause 96 in Part V of the Bill. The other amendments in this group are consequential on the three main amendments to which I have referred.
The four amendments to Clause 120, in particular Amendment No. 243A, ensure that the same definition of "publish" is used throughout the Bill. Amendment No. 317C has the effect of preserving the existing Section 110 of the 1983 Act in respect of local
Page 143, line 19, after ("2(1)(a)") insert ("(other than money)").
Page 143, line 24, at beginning insert ("the total value in monetary terms of").
Page 143, line 24, at end insert--
("(2A) The value of any donation falling within paragraph 2(1)(aa) shall be taken to be the value of the money, or (as the case may be) the market value of the property, transferred as mentioned in paragraph 2A(1); and accordingly any value in monetary terms of any benefit conferred on the person providing the sponsorship in question shall be disregarded.").
Page 143, leave out lines 27 to 30 and insert--
("(a) the total value in monetary terms of the consideration that would have had to be provided by or on behalf of the recognised third party in respect of the loan or the provision of the property, services or facilities if--
(i) the loan had been made, or
(ii) the property, services or facilities had been provided,
on commercial terms, and
(b) the total value in monetary terms of the consideration (if any) actually so provided by or on behalf of the recognised third party.").
Page 143, line 31, leave out sub-paragraph (4).
Page 143, line 34, leave out ("or (4)").
On Question, amendments agreed to.
Page 145, line 13, leave out ("relevant donation") and insert ("recognised third party").
On Question, amendment agreed to.
Page 145, line 34, after ("donor") insert ("(whether or not falling within paragraph (a))").
On Question, amendment agreed to.
Page 59, line 4, leave out ("except where the third party is a registered party,") and insert ("in a case where the third party either is not a registered party or is a minor party,").
Page 59, line 24, leave out ("during the regulated period").
On Question, amendments agreed to.
Page 60, line 45, leave out from ("him") to end of line 3 on page 61.
Page 61, line 4, leave out ("the case of a recognised third party other than a registered party,") and insert ("a case where the third party either is not a registered party or is a minor party,").
On Question, amendments agreed to.
9.15 p.m.
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