Non-party campaigners: UK Parliamentary general elections

Print full guidance

Key principles of joint campaigning

There must be more than one non-party campaigner

An existing umbrella organisation that makes decisions about their campaign activity independently will not be joint campaigning unless they enter into a plan or arrangement with other non-party campaigners in which they all intend to incur controlled expenditure, whether that expenditure is to be incurred by, or on behalf of, each non-party campaigner.

A new organisation set up to carry out campaign activity that constitutes a group of other organisations and then spending money is not joint campaigning.

There must be an agreed understanding that controlled expenditure will be incurred to achieve the common purpose

If there is no intention to incur expenditure there is no joint campaigning. For example, if it is agreed that all activity will be carried out by volunteers no spending will be incurred and there will be no joint campaigning.

There must be an agreed understanding as to the scope and purpose of the campaign

Non-party campaigners who happen to campaign about similar or related issues are not joint campaigners.

There must be an agreed understanding between the non-party campaigners that each of them will incur controlled expenditure to achieve the common purpose, whether that expenditure is to be incurred by, or on behalf, of the non-party campaigner in question

All controlled expenditure incurred in pursuance of the plan or arrangement will fall within the joint campaigning rules.

Joint campaigning is not simply

  • transferring or lending items to another campaigner or
  • providing money to another campaigner

This must be treated as notional spending or a donation and dealt with in accordance with the appropriate rules.

Even if one of the non-party campaigners involved in the plan or arrangement does not incur their share of agreed expenditure, any expenditure incurred will still be joint campaigning and must be reported by all non-party campaigners involved.

Any controlled expenditure incurred by a non-party campaigner that goes beyond or is incurred outside of the agreed plan or arrangement, is not part of the joint campaign but will still count towards the spending limit of the non-party campaigner incurring the expenditure.

Only spending that was agreed as part of the joint campaign counts towards the spending limit of the other non-party campaigners involved in the joint plan.

Activities that are joint campaigning

Non-party campaigners who engage in the following, non-exhaustive list of activities are likely to be joint campaigners:

  • a joint advertising campaign, whether digital, electronic or via other means, involving joint leaflets or joint events
  • a co-ordinated campaign; for example where it is agreed which areas are to be covered, which issues raised or which voters targeted
  • joint working where one party can veto or must approve another party’s material

Example

Two organisations run similar campaigns calling for proportional representation in the UK Parliament. The first organisation’s campaign focuses on targeting swing voters in marginal constituencies and the second campaign aims to encourage the public to support only candidates and parties in who are in favour of adopting proportional representation in UK elections.

In the lead up to a UK Parliamentary general election, the two campaigners decide to launch a campaign together with the purpose of promoting parties in favour of proportional representation. For the purposes of this example, this planned campaign consists of regulated campaign activities. They each raise £1,000 with the intention of spending this money together on the campaign.

They plan the campaign by agreeing on five key goals and a timeline for the campaign, which consists of a social media campaign on both of their platforms and in-person events they run together. The teams behind the campaigns both agree on the content of the material before it is published.

Activities that are not joint campaigning

Non-party campaigners who engage in the following, non-exhaustive list of activities are unlikely to be joint campaigners:

  • endorsing another campaign by allowing your logo/brand to be used without any financial commitment or further involvement
  • adding your signature to a letter alongside other non-party campaigners without any financial commitment
  • speaking freely at an event organised by another non-party campaigner without any financial commitment
  • holding discussions about areas of common interest without coordinating campaign activity
  • making a donation to another non-party campaigner is not joint campaigning. See sections on notional spending and donations.

Example A

Two organisations run similar campaigns calling for proportional representation in the UK Parliament. The aim of both organisations is to encourage political parties to adopt proportional representation.

The first organisation sets up a petition in which they ask people to add their name to call on the UK Parliament to adopt proportional representation. They ask the second organisation to sign the petition and share it with their supporters. After the petition is closed, they also ask the second organisation to add their name to an open letter they place in newspapers which calls on voters to support parties in favour of alternative voting systems at the upcoming general election.

In this scenario, although the open letter is regulated activity, the organisations have not entered into a plan or arrangement together and there is no intention for both campaigners to incur spending. Therefore, this is not joint campaigning.

Example B

Two organisations run similar campaigns calling for proportional representation in the UK Parliament. The first organisation’s campaign focuses on targeting swing voters in marginal constituencies and the second campaign aims to increase public awareness of the benefits of proportional representation.

After a by-election is called in a marginal constituency, the first organisation organises events in the constituency to reach voters. They ask the second organisation to talk at one of the events and publicise the events on their social media. There is no financial commitment between the organisations or any co-ordinated spending. This is not joint campaigning.

Example C

Two organisations run similar campaigns calling for the government to adopt particular policies on climate change. The first organisation calls on voters to vote for parties who have committed to the issues they have identified, and the organisation asks the second organisation to share their material and promote their campaign on X/Twitter and other social media accounts. The second organisation agrees to publicise the first organisation’s work but does not carry out any co-ordinated spending or any regulated campaigning themselves.

In this scenario, the first organisation is carrying out regulated campaign activities by influencing voters to vote in a particular way at the election. The second organisation must assess whether they have spent any money on regulated campaign activities. Even though the second organisation has shared the first organisation’s election material to their followers, the organisations have not entered into a plan or arrangement to incur spending on regulated campaigning together. Therefore, this is not joint campaigning.

Example D

An organisation runs a campaign encouraging voters to vote for parties who have pledged to introduce laws to protect tenants. They identify campaigners and a charity with shared aims and promote these organisations to their supporters and publicly on their social media accounts. They also make a donation to one of the other campaigners that is supporting tenants.

In this scenario, the organisation is carrying out regulated campaign activities by influencing voters to vote in a particular way at the election. Even if the other organisations they have promoted also spend money on regulated campaign activities, there is no financial commitment or co-ordinated spending between any of the campaigners.

In addition, a donation does not mean campaigners are working (or spending money) together. Each organisation would be required to individually assess whether they are spending money on any regulated campaign activities. Therefore, this is not joint campaigning.

Last updated: 15 May 2024