Official notices
Election of Members of Parliament - Thursday 4 July 2024
Statement of persons nominated
Situation of polling stations
Agents name and offices
Inspection of election expenses
Publication of candidate’s election expenses
Candidates at all elections must, by law, submit a formal return to the Returning Officer or Acting Returning Officer after polling day. This must be done by the deadlines in the timetables published for each poll.
- how much they spend in the lead up to the election
- activities undertaken where money was spent
- the keeping of the appropriate expenditure records
- the different types of spending that may be incurred.
This is not a return to the council but to the appropriate Returning Officer or Acting Returning Officer. The council has no role in this process.
Election expenditure is a complicated subject. Detailed information on the requirements is on the Electoral Commission's website.
The requirement to make a spending return is detailed in legislation (s.89, Representation of the People Act 1983) and the links provide detailed information as follows.
Local elections
Candidate spending - Parliamentary Elections
The spending returns and declarations are held by the Returning Officer. Spending returns and declarations can be inspected by anyone after they have been submitted. Copies can also be made for a fee of 20p per side.
Spending returns and declarations are kept for two years. After that, candidates or their agents can request them back. If they don't want them, the documents will be destroyed.
Parliamentary elections
Candidate spending - Parliamentary Elections
The spending returns and declarations are held by the (Acting) Returning Officer. Spending returns and declarations can be inspected by any person after they have been submitted. Copies can also be made for a fee of 20p per side.
Key information
Elections and electoral registration are by an Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) and/or Returning Officer (RO) appointed under the Representation of the People Act 1983. These positions are independent 'statutory office holders'.
This means that they carry out their duties in a personal capacity and not on behalf of Tower Hamlets Council. Also, those who undertake work on behalf of these statutory office holders do so under their direction and not the council.
The ERO and/or RO are also not subject to the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
This is because the Act only applies to 'public authorities'. The ERO and/or RO are not listed in Schedule 1 of the Act. A Ministerial Order under s5 has not been made defining them as such.