Clause 5
Political Parties and Elections Bill
10:45 am
Eleanor Laing (Shadow Minister, Justice; Epping Forest, Conservative)
I thank the hon. Gentleman for that intervention. We could get into an artistic argument about shades of grey and black. I do not accept that, on one side of the argument, things are grey and that, on the other, they are murky black. There are areas that are not quite clear on all sides of the argument, which is why we have to clarify the Bill. However, we are considering amendment No. 15 and now is not the correct time to consider shades of black or grey in the area to which he referred.
All I am trying to do with the amendment is tighten up the criteria for political appointments. Conservative Members consider that people who have direct political experience will enhance the Electoral Commission.