Clause 1
Political Parties and Elections Bill
5:00 pm
Michael Wills (Minister of State, Ministry of Justice; North Swindon, Labour)
I will address some of the detailed issues that have been raised in a moment. First, I shall explain briefly why we will have to resist both amendments.
Amendment No. 2 is unnecessary as it would be unhelpful to have in primary legislation such a hard requirement on the commission. We have every confidence that the commission will produce the guidance as necessary, and I am aware that it has already started work on it. However, in practice it would be difficult for a statutory requirement that it must produce guidance to work. What would constitute the guidance having been produced? Who would judge that it was adequate and that the commission had fulfilled its statutory obligation? It seems to me that the amendment would open it up to judicial review, which can hardly be a sensible recourse given what we are trying to achieve in the clause. A permissive power for the commission to produce guidance is sufficient. It will be able to keep the guidance updated and refreshed and focused on key areas of uncertainty. Amending the Bill in the way sought in the amendment would not add anything.
Amendment No. 81 would limit the commission’s guidance to setting out what it is necessary or desirable to do, or avoid doing, to comply with the requirements of the 2000 Act. We believe that the clause will allow the commission flexibility to decide what information it should set out in its guidance to help regulated individuals to comply with regulatory requirements. The amendment would unnecessarily restrict the commission’s flexibility.
The clause will allow the commission to produce a wide range of guidance, including best practice guidance and pro formas that parties can complete if they wish to comply with the requirements on them to report to the commission. We believe that that flexibility will help Members and other regulated persons.
Both my hon. Friend the Member for Carmarthen, West and South Pembrokeshire and the hon. Member for Cambridge asked why in some parts of the Bill we suggest that the commission should be given a power, but in others we seek to impose a duty on it. Quite simply, the difference is that the commission “shall” produce guidance on the use of investigatory powers and sanctions, but it “may” produce guidance on the requirements of the 2000 Act. That is because sanctions and powers are a much narrower issue with potentially serious consequences, and the commission must therefore explain how it intends to use them.
The requirements of PPERA are many and complex, and the Electoral Commission must be empowered to judge which aspects require explanation. Requiring guidance on every single aspect of the Bill would make it very difficult and effectively inoperable. I hope that that gives some reassurance to my hon. Friend and the hon. Gentleman about why we have adopted the distinction between the application of the power and the duty.