Electoral Commission concludes two enforcement cases

16 Sep 2015 11:22 AM

As part of its regular monthly casework update, the Electoral Commission has yesterday published details of two separate cases it has concluded and where sanctions have been applied.

In the first case, Labour for Independence has been fined £1500 for failing to provide a report of its spending during the Scottish independence referendum. In the second, The British Commonwealth Party has been fined £1000 for failing to deliver reports of donations and loans on time.

Further information on each of the concluded cases can be found below.

Labour for Independence

We have fined Labour for Independence, a campaigner in the Scottish independence referendum, £1500 for failing to provide a report of its spending during the campaign.

Under the Scottish Independence Referendum Act all permitted participants registered with the Commission were required to deliver a report of spending. Labour for Independence was the only campaigner that failed to provide any report. The Commission liaised with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal before taking action.

The Commission considered that this was a serious breach of the rules, as without the report the public has no information as to what donations Labour for Independence accepted, how much it spent, or how it spent that money. In addition, the penalty reflects the Commission’s concerns over Labour for Independence’s apparent lack of commitment to compliance. The Commission took into account that this was not the first compliance issue with this campaigner; leaflets distributed during the campaign by Labour for Independence did not have an imprint, although in that case the Commission dealt with the matter without formal action.

The penalty will increase by 50% if not paid within 56 days of being imposed, and the Commission may after a further 28 days take action to obtain payment through the courts using the debt recovery process.

The British Commonwealth Party

We have fined the British Commonwealth Party, a registered political party,£1000 for failing to deliver donations and loans reports on time. The penalty reflects the Commission’s concern that the treasurer is not taking his responsibilities seriously. The Commission sought to engage with the party and resolve the matter without the need for sanctions, but the treasurer of the party did not engage with us to enable this. Once a penalty notice was issued the treasurer indicated that they wished to remove the party from the register, but they have not yet done so.

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 details of previous concluded cases and sanctions see the Commission’s website here.

For further information contact:
Megan Phillips in the Electoral Commission press office on 020 7271 0704 ormphillips@electoralcommission.org.uk
Out of office hours 07789 920 414

Notes to Editors

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).
The Electoral Commission has a range of enforcement powers under PPERA 2000. For more information on the regulatory work of the Commission see the website here.
Any potential breaches of the rules which regulate political party funding are considered in line with the Commission’s enforcement policy which can be accessedhere.
On the third Tuesday of every month, the Electoral Commission publishes details of concluded cases where the Commission has imposed sanctions here.