My Lords, I thank the noble Lord for moving his amendment. Taken together, Amendments 62 and 71 would require the petition officer to provide copies of every recall petition return to the Electoral Commission, and the Electoral Commission to produce a report after every recall petition process. Under the Bill as drafted, when a petition officer receives a copy of a recall petition return from an accredited campaigner, they are bound to make this available publicly for two years. This will ensure that, as for a candidate campaigning in a constituency, spending and donations are transparent.
In addition, the petition officer must supply a copy of any return upon request to the Electoral Commission if made within these two years. This provision complements the approach followed in Schedule 6, which amends the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000. This will permit the Electoral Commission to produce, at its own initiation,
“a report on the actions taken, or not taken, under or by virtue of that Act”—
the recall Bill—
“in relation to the recall petition in question after the giving of the Speaker’s notice”.
In drafting the Bill we have, where appropriate, followed existing electoral law. A particular focus has been placed on creating a regulatory approach consistent with that applied to any subsequent by-election. This is very much the case in this situation.
The noble Lord, Lord Kennedy, is proposing an amendment which would require the Electoral Commission to produce a report after every recall petition. To support this, a further amendment would require the petition officer to transfer automatically all recall petitions to the Electoral Commission. The approach suggested by these amendments would create an inconsistency whereby the commission would be required to produce a report on a recall petition, while it would be for the commission to decide whether to produce a report on any subsequent by-election. The Electoral Commission does not have sanctioning and investigatory powers over campaigners at a recall petition or at the subsequent by-election. The Government therefore do not consider it appropriate to introduce a requirement for the commission to produce a report on the recall petition process. The Government believe that it is best left to the commission to decide whether to produce a report. Were the Electoral Commission to have a stronger role at recall petitions, it would introduce a regulatory approach significantly different from its current role at elections. This includes a by-election which would follow a successful recall petition.
I certainly do not want to irritate the noble Lord, Lord Kennedy, but the Electoral Commission’s view on this amendment is to note that,
“the discretionary power currently provided in the Bill for the Commission to produce a report on a recall of MPs petition, which is consistent with the Commission’s power to report on the administration of UK Parliamentary by-elections, is sufficient”.
I hope that the noble Lord will understand the Government’s reservations and feel able to withdraw his amendment.