Electoral Administration Bill

That is one of the key issues. Of course, it is not necessarily associations that would have spent such money. If a council promoted a particular issue and the councillor taking the lead on it proved later to be the parliamentary candidate, that could give rise to all manner of questions relating to council expenditure. We should also bear in mind the incidental expenditure provision. The Minister is right to say that if money is spent properly and in accordance with House rules, it should not be treated as a pre-election expense. However, it is necessary to examine in detail the commission’s view of such matters, which it has a duty to define. So we need to consult fully on these many complex details if we are to avoid ending up with a provision that is very hard to implement. My initial view was that although there is a problem, in solving it we might create a worse one. I therefore welcome the Minister’s commitment to full consultation and to a separate order-making power, which could be implemented at a much later date, once all these issues have been looked into. The Electoral Commission is also concerned about the matter, and it will be worth looking at the study that it is undertaking. Progress is being made, so I do not want to press amendments Nos. 21 to 23. The Government have listened to the very important points made in Committee by my hon. Friends the Members for Huntingdon (Mr. Djanogly) and for Epping Forest (Mrs. Laing).