Elections expense limits - Parliament

Table 1: Recommended candidates’ expenses limits
Election Current expenses limit Recommended expenses limit
Basic
(£)
Per elector
(p)
Basic
(£)
Per elector
(p)
UK Parliament
(borough
5,483 4.6 7,150 5
constituency)
UK Parliament
(county
5,483 6.2 7,150 7
constituency)
Source: Electoral Commission 2
The Electoral Commission reported that it had taken into account both inflation, since the
limits were last increased (based on the GDP deflator), and to reflect changes in the definition
of election expenditure that was included in PPERA – most notably that notional expenditure
has to be recorded in a candidate’s election expenses return.
The Electoral Commission calculated that the basic limit (for both borough and county
constituencies) needed to increase by £618 to take into account the effect of inflation and by a
further £1,027, to allow for the change in definition of expenses (the latter figure was based
on estimates of the average office rental costs of a candidate). It calculated that to allow for
inflation the per elector limits would need to increase to 5.1p and 6.9p for borough and
county constituencies, respectively. However, in reaching its final recommendations
expenses limits were “rounded up to the nearest £50 for the basic rate element and the nearest
pence for the per elector element, in order to ensure that limits are based on figures that are
both easy to calculate and remember”. 3
2. The revised limits
As shown in the two quotations above, PPERA also affected the way in which changes to
expenses limits are implemented In order to give effect to these recommendations or
alternative limits, the Secretary of State has to make an Order. Until the passing of PPERA,
the Order was made under the affirmative procedure. Since the passing of PPERA, the Order
is now made under the negative procedure.
On 10 February 2005, the Government announced, by way of a Written Ministerial Statement
that the Electoral Commission’s recommendations had been accepted:
2
3
Electoral Commission, Variation of election expenses for candidates at UK Parliamentary and local
government elections: Recommendations, January 2005,
http://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/files/dms/Variations_15470-11493__E__N__S__W__.pdf
Ibid, pp9-14
3