Political Parties and Elections Bill

I am grateful to the noble Lords who have spoken in this short debate. These amendments would require those served with a disclosure notice by the commission under paragraphs 1 and 3 of Schedule 19B to comply within 28 days. Currently under the Bill, they would be required to comply within such reasonable time as specified in the notice. As my right honourable friend the Minister of State emphasised in another place in response to an identical amendment, the Government fully accept that those who receive a disclosure notice need to be given time to comply with it and that they need to know how long that period is. That is why the Bill currently provides for a disclosure notice to specify a reasonable period of time within which the person served with the notice must comply. The issue here is that what constituted a reasonable amount of time in one case would not be reasonable in another. Therefore, while a time limit of 28 days would be sufficient in some cases, it might cause real difficulties for the receiver of the disclosure notice in others. We think that, on balance, the best way forward is to allow the commission the discretion to vary the period for compliance depending on the nature of the request. This more flexible formulation is appropriate, as in some instances the commission will need to allow a longer period for the production of documents or the provision of information than in others. For example, a request may be time-critical, particularly if there is a concern that the success of an investigation may be under threat if it is not obtained very speedily. It will be open to individuals to contact the commission to seek an extension of the period if they feel they have genuine reasons for doing so. Alternatively, a longer period may be more appropriate where a large amount of documentation is sought. Again, in this instance we think that we have the balance right and that it would be too inflexible to set a particular number of days, as it would not cover every circumstance. Therefore, I ask the noble Lord to consider withdrawing the amendment.