Objective two: Transparent political campaigning and compliant political finance

It is a fundamental part of the democratic process that campaigners are able to get their messages to voters.

Campaigners, including parties, must be able to communicate with voters to explain their views and policies, so that voters are informed when they vote. It’s important that voters hear from a wide and diverse variety of campaigners.

We are working to improve the transparency of political campaigning, and help parties and campaigners to comply with the law by:

• ensuring campaigners can access support to understand the law in the way and at the time that works best for them
• ensuring political finance laws are enforced fairly, working with police services and other regulators to support their work in areas outside our legal remit
• publishing complete and accurate political finance data
• providing insights to campaigners and parliaments on how campaigning methods directly affect voter confidence in elections.

• As a result of the Elections Act and following a period of close consultation and engagement with stakeholders and the campaigner community, we developed new statutory guidance on codes of practice for non-party campaigners.
• We created statutory guidance on the new digital imprint rules, to ensure that the regulated community could clearly understand when and how the requirements applied. We also hosted webinars for political parties to provide a platform for their questions, and have created an online facility for the public to submit digital material that does not have an imprint to check whether it is compliant.
• We held pre-election webinars to explain the law, as well as virtual advice surgeries for candidates and agents to discuss specific issues with one of our expert advisers. We offered further advice surgeries in advance of the reporting deadlines, to provide practical and ongoing support with spending returns.
• We introduced a new bulletin for political parties and non-party campaigners, and one for the network of police single points of contact (SPOCs), to support engagement with these key stakeholders. We also held a seminar for SPOCs, focusing on changes from the Elections Act, and we continued to contribute to and support the accredited training courses for police officers on election law.
• Following sector consultation, the Commission’s revised Enforcement Policy came into force in September, to provide the basis on which we make enforcement decisions.
• We continued to advocate for improvements to controls on donations to political parties to prevent the threat of foreign interference and improve the public perception of political transparency.
• We updated our guidance to reflect changes to the law which increased the spending limits and the reporting threshold, as well as excluding security related expenses from spending rules.
• We reviewed guidance for candidates on intimidation and harassment, developed jointly with the National Police Chiefs Council, Crown Prosecution Service and the College of Policing. Similar guidance in conjunction with the Police Service of Northern Ireland was also reviewed this year.
• Delivered guidance for May 2024, using party and campaigner feedback to ensure it is clear and easy to understand.

• To support compliance and understanding of the rules in the regulated community, we will continue to offer webinars and advice surgeries. We use feedback gained from these events, to tailor our support, advice, and communication for all elections.
• Deliver bulletins to parties and campaigners during the regulated period before a general election, delivering extra guidance and advice that is designed to meet stakeholder needs throughout the campaign.
• Conclude party registration applications in a timely manner to provide transparency to voters about the parties eligible to stand candidates. We will continue to do likewise with the conclusion of investigations so that parties and campaigners have clarity over their compliance with the political finance laws.
• Publish financial information during and after a general election, including pre-poll donations and spending returns to ensure transparency of political finance.
• Monitor the implementation of the digital imprint regime, and its impact on public confidence in campaigning.
• Continue to monitor and discuss with stakeholders the use of new forms of political campaigning, particularly related to new technology, and work to understand the impact on voters’ confidence.
• Continue to make the case for reforms of political finance laws to ensure that the system is better protected against the potential for foreign influence and transparency is delivered for voters.