I think it comes back to the point that, if there is an accredited observer inside, they may be able to take the names of people who are petitioning and, therefore, those people might feel intimidated. I entirely see the noble Lord’s point, but I gently disagree. Let me come back to noble Lords on where exactly that is in law.
As regards the consultation on this, as I said in my opening remarks, the Electoral Commission has been consulted, as is required by statute. On top of that, consultation has been undertaken with the Association of Electoral Administrators, returning officers, electoral registration officers, the Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland, the Electoral Management Board for Scotland and the electoral management software suppliers. The territorial officers and officials in the Scottish Government have also been consulted on the relevant parts of the legislation. It is not statutorily required for the Government to consult political parties.
A very good point was made about the cost, and I apologise for not mentioning that in my opening remarks. I am told it is expected that a recall petition would cost approximately £100,000. In terms of the payment of that, the Electoral Commission would pay for its own staff and it would not be reimbursed for that. Other payments would be met centrally by the Treasury from the Consolidated Fund. Again, I will write to noble Lords to confirm exactly that point.
5 pm
A couple of noble Lords referred to the issue of whether someone might be able to sign twice. This point was raised in the other place and I remind your Lordships of what was said there by my honourable friend John Penrose. He said: “It is important that the proper processes are followed over the six-week period to ensure that people cannot sign twice. This means that any application made to sign the petition by post during the signing period will have to be checked by the register held at the signing place. If the register has been marked to show that the elector has been issued with a signing sheet at the signing place then the application to sign by post will be refused. If the register shows that a signing sheet has not been issued, then the application will be approved and the register held at the signing place will be marked accordingly.
The fact that the register held at the signing place is marked when signing sheets are issued prevents attempts at double signing”. I should add that I understand that it is an offence to vote twice.
The noble Baroness asked why there is no date on the signing sheet. The date is marked on the register by the petition officer.
The noble Baroness, Lady Donaghy, asked me to define “infrequently”. As the noble Lord, Lord Lipsey, said, this is covered in the Cabinet Office guidance. It is hoped that this would mean very rarely indeed. However, it is not for me to define what “infrequently” means; that is an issue for Members of Parliament. I say no more than that.
The noble Baroness also asked whether I can give an assurance that the scrutiny powers being used are not mixed. The powers being exercised under these regulations will all be subject to the affirmative procedure and so there is no mixing of procedures.
The noble Lords, Lord Campbell-Savours and Lord Lipsey, made interesting, valid points about whether someone who did not vote in a general election should be able to sign a petition. Should abstainers have this power? That is the current state of the Act. I cannot address the issue now in regard to these regulations, but I heed what has been said.
I will need to read to the noble Lord about is meant by “family relationships”. I am afraid that my understanding, which potentially may not be helpful to him, is that it mirrors the process for elections and is not defined in legislation. I shall write to the noble Lord to define further exactly what that might mean.
The noble Lord also asked about who is the accredited campaigner. There will be two categories of campaigners —accredited and non-accredited. Anyone who wishes to incur expense of more than £500 in relation to petition campaigning must become an accredited campaigner. Those wishing to become accredited campaigners must notify the petition officer and nominate a responsible person to ensure that the spending limits are observed. The campaigner will be entitled to spend up to £10,000. Accredited campaigners must provide details of any donations over £500 to the petition officer. Non-accredited campaigners will be able to spend up to £500 campaigning on the petition without having to make any declaration concerning spending.
I hope your Lordships will forgive me for not addressing the other points now. As I say, I shall certainly write to noble Lords about them.