Citation, commencement and extent

1.  (1)  This Order may be cited as the Electoral Commission (Limit on Public Awareness Expenditure) Order 2014 and comes into force on 1st April 2014.

(2) This Order extends to the United Kingdom and Gibraltar.

Maximum sum to be incurred on public awareness

2.  The sum specified for the purposes of section 13(6) of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (maximum sum which the Electoral Commission may incur in any financial year in performing their functions under section 13(1) of that Act(2))-

(a)in the financial year ending with 31st March 2015, is £9,500,000, and

(b)in any subsequent financial year, is £7,500,000.

Revocation

3.  The Electoral Commission (Limit on Public Awareness Expenditure) Order 2002(3) is revoked.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order)

Under section 13(1) of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000, as modified by section 13(1A), the Electoral Commission are required to promote public awareness of current electoral systems in the United Kingdom and (so far as concerns elections to the European Parliament) in Gibraltar. Section 13(6) requires a limit to be set on the amount which the Commission may spend on that function in any financial year. This Order increases the present limit to £9,500,000 for the financial year 2014/15 because of additional work relating to the new system of individual electoral registration. Thereafter the limit will revert to the present limit of £7,500,000. The current Order (S.I. 2002/505) is revoked.

A full impact assessment has not been prepared for this instrument as no impact on the private or voluntary sector is foreseen.