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As part of its regular monthly casework update, the Electoral Commission has today (17 May) published details of a case it has concluded. The Commission has fined Ipswich Conservative Association £1,100 because it accepted an impermissible donation. The association paid the fine immediately upon notification of the proposed penalty.

Ipswich Conservative Association accepted a donation of £3,000 in March 2015 from an individual who did not appear on the register of electors at that time.

Under electoral law, political parties and their accounting units must not accept a donation unless it comes from a permissible source, and must make checks to ensure the donor is permissible.

The donor appeared to be eligible to be on the register of electors at the time the donation was received and the Commission did not seek forfeiture. The Commission imposed the penalty because the association did not conduct adequate checks on the donation.

Any penalties that are imposed by the Commission go into the Consolidated Fund. This is managed by HM Treasury and not the Electoral Commission.

For more information please contact:

Umar Hanif at the Electoral Commission press office on 020 7271 0536.
Out of office hours 07789 920414 
Email uhanif@electoralcommission.org.uk

Notes to editors

1. The Electoral Commission is an independent body set up by the UK Parliament. Our aim is integrity and public confidence in the UK’s democratic process. We regulate party and election finance and set standards for well-run elections and are responsible for the conduct and regulation of referendums held under the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act (2000).
2. The law says that individuals can only make donations over £500 for political purposes if they are on an electoral register. If a party or campaigner accepts a donation from someone who is not on the register, we can fine the recipient.  We can also apply to the courts for the donation to be forfeited.
3. The Electoral Commission did not apply for the donations in these cases to be forfeited. A Supreme Court judgment in 2010 - case of the Electoral Commission (Respondent) v City of Westminster Magistrates Court (Respondent) and the United Kingdom Independence Party (Appellant) – made it highly unlikely that a court would order forfeiture of these donations.
4. The Electoral Commission recommended to the Government in 2013 that the law on the forfeiture of donations should be changed. At present it is complex and potentially inconsistent in effect.
5. On the third Tuesday of every month, the Electoral Commission publishes details of concluded cases where the Commission has imposed sanctions here. These can include fixed or variable financial penalties or other sanctions such as a compliance notice.