Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many organisations have been fined for failing to comply with regulations on third party campaigning set out in the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014.

The rules on third party campaigning at elections are set out in the Political Parties Elections and Referendums Act 2000. These rules were amended by the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014.

Since the amendments made by the 2014 Act came into force, three organisations have been fined by the Electoral Commission. On 19 April 2016, the Electoral Commission announced that it had fined Steve Hart from the Centre for Labour and Social Studies £1100 for failing to deliver two donations reports on time. On 19 April 2017, the Commission announced that it had fined Greenpeace Limited a total of £30,000 and Friends of the Earth Limited £1000. Both organisations did not register with the Electoral Commission at the 2015 UK Parliamentary General Election before spending in excess of the registration threshold.