Before elections and referendums, there is a regulated period for the campaign that puts a limit on spending.
The spending returns for parties and campaigners who spent over £250,000 at the 2019 general election were expected in June 2020 but due to Covid-19 not all parties and campaigners were able to deliver returns by that deadline. Therefore, we are publishing spending returns in batches, so that voters can see the spending information that is ready for release; this means the information on the following pages is not yet complete and is being updated when we publish each batch
Elections
Spending limits during election campaigns apply to:
candidates
political parties
non-party campaigners
These limits vary for different elections.
Political parties have to:
record what they spend during the election campaign
report their spending to us in a spending return
Non-party campaigners have to register with us if they plan to spend over a certain amount during the campaign. These amounts are:
£20,000 in England
£10,000 in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland
Once non-party campaigners have registered with us, they have to record their spending, and report it to us.
Referendums
We regulate referendums that are taking place under the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (PPERA referendums). We don’t regulate other types, such as local government referendums.
Campaigners can spend up to £10,000 in a PPERA referendum without registering with us.
If campaigners want to spend more than £10,000, they have to register with us and follow the rules on campaign spending. Campaigners have to:
follow spend limits
decide if they can accept donations based on who they’re from
record what they spend during the referendum campaign
After the referendum, registered campaigners have to report their spending to us in a spending return.
Lead campaign group
Registered campaigners in a referendum can apply to become the lead campaign group for one side of the debate. This is also known as being the designated organisation.
Lead campaign groups:
have a higher spending limit than other registered campaigners
get funding to send information to voters
can be involved in referendum campaign broadcasts
can use certain public rooms for free
receive a grant from us
Campaign spending at past elections and referendums
We publish all of the information we receive on Political Finance Online, so you can see what political parties, campaigners and other groups are doing.
