Introduction
This guidance is for non-party campaigners who are campaigning at Greater London Authority elections.
Under the Representation of the People Act 1983, non-party campaigners must follow rules about how much they can spend on campaign activities in the run up to certain elections.
This guidance explains how the rules apply.
What are non-party campaigners?
Non-party campaigners are individuals or organisations that campaign in elections, but are not standing as political parties or candidates.
Non-party campaigners have to follow certain rules in the run-up to elections.
The types of non-party campaigns
There are two types of non-party campaigns. These are:
General campaigns | Local campaigns |
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Campaigns for or against:
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Campaigns for or against:
|
This guidance covers the laws for local campaigns at Greater London Authority elections.
Spending on general campaigns is only regulated in the run-up to elections to:
- the UK Parliament
- the Scottish Parliament
- the Senedd
- the Northern Ireland Assembly
You can find guidance for other election types on our non-party campaigner search page.
Local campaigns at local elections
If you are campaigning for or against a candidate at a Greater London Authority election, you are covered by the rules for local campaigns.
The Electoral Commission does not regulate local campaigning. Complaints about possible breaches should be made to the police.
Under the local campaign rules, there are limits on how much you can spend on campaigning for or against particular candidates in a constituency or local electoral area. These limits are different, depending on the size of the electorate in the relevant area.
These spending limits cover spending on most campaign activities, including leaflets, meetings and digital campaigning.
Spending limits
Local non-party campaigners can spend up to £50 plus 0.5p per elector campaigning for or against a candidate in the electoral area in question. This is known as the permitted sum. It applies once the candidate is officially a candidate (see When does a person officially become a candidate?).
The number of electors is the number of electors registered to vote on the last day for publication of the notice of election in the electoral area in question.1 You should ask London Elects for the specific number of registered electors on this day to calculate your permitted sum.
Campaigns for or against a candidate for: | Permitted sum |
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| £50 plus 0.5p for each elector in the Greater London Authority area |
| £50 plus 0.5p for each elector in the relevant constituency |
You should keep a record of your spending, to make sure that you do not exceed the spending limit.
Any spending over these limits must be authorised in writing by the agent of the relevant candidate. The authorised spending will count as candidate spending and towards the candidate’s spending limit.2
If you have been authorised to incur candidate spending, you should read our guidance for candidates and agents.
- 1. Section 17 Greater London Authority Act 1999 and section 75(1ZZB) & (1ZA)(b) Representation of the People Act 1983 (RPA 1983) ↩ Back to content at footnote 1
- 2. S.75(1) RPA 1983 RPA 1983 ↩ Back to content at footnote 2
Reporting
If authorisation is given, the agent will need to include your spending in the candidate spending return. You will need to give the agent the necessary details for that spending to be included.
If you spend more than the limit you must also complete a spending return and declaration and deliver these to the Greater London Returning Officer (GLRO) within 21 days of the result being declared.
The GLRO can be contacted through London Elects.
In both documents you must include:
- the constituency name
- the date of publication of notice of the election (you can find this out from your local Returning Officer)
- the name of the election agent who authorised the spending
- the name of the candidate whose agent authorised the spending
- your name as the organisation or individual who incurred the spending
In the return you must include your total amount of spending, and you must attach the agent's written authorisation for your spending.
In the declaration you must declare that the return is complete and correct, and include details about what the spending was on, under “the matters for which the spending referred to were incurred”.
Imprints
Under the law, some campaign material must contain details to show who is responsible for the material. This provides transparency for voters.
If you produce material that relates to an electoral event, or to a party, candidate or elected office-holder, you may need to include an imprint.
Imprints can be required on digital material and printed material.