CONTROL OF DONATIONS TO PERMITTED PARTICIPANTS (Hansard, 16 February 2000)

§ Mr. Walter

Clause 112 is incredibly short; it immediately refers to schedule 14, which is the next item 1046 on the selection list. It is impossible to consider clause 112 without a fairly detailed reference to schedule 14, so I apologise in advance if I stray into what might be a debate on the next schedule.

Schedule 14 states that it has effect for controlling donations to permitted participants other than registered parties. When we read further into the schedule, it feels as though we are going around in a circle. Clause 112, taken with schedule 14, makes nonsense of this part of the Bill.

Part II of the schedule is headed "Controls on Donations". It states:

A relevant donation received by a permitted participant must not be accepted by the permitted participant if … the person by whom the donation would be made is not, at the time of its receipt by the permitted participant, a permissible donor falling within section 48(2). We have referred to clause 48(2) at length in our deliberations. It states that a permissible donor is an individual registered in an electoral register; a company … registered under the Companies Act 1985 or the Companies (Northern Ireland) Order 1986, and … incorporated within the European Union; a registered party; a trade union … a friendly society … any other unincorporated association of two or more persons which carries on … activities wholly or mainly in the United Kingdom and whose main office is there". Earlier provisions in the measure create a procedure whereby a permitted participant would not be eligible to be a permissible donor. It is okay for a foreigner, a foreign company or a foreign association to be a permitted participant in a referendum campaign, but heaven forbid that any of them should make a contribution to any other permitted participant because that would be an impermissible donation.

The Government need to reconsider clause 112 and schedule 14, because they make nonsense of this part of the Bill. They would create the ridiculous situation whereby foreigners could participate in referendum campaigns for whatever reason—earlier the Parliamentary Secretary, Privy Council Office told us that it is because of the European convention on human rights—but could not write out a cheque to other permitted participants, even if those permitted participants were themselves foreigners. We are in a tangle. I suggest to the Ministers that clause 112, and schedule 14 which hangs on it, should be reconsidered and even withdrawn.

§ Mr. Mike O'Brien

I have considered the points made by the hon. Member for North Dorset (Mr. Walter). The purpose of clause 112—like that of clause 111, but more so—is simply to introduce the schedule. The schedule controls donations to referendum campaign groups in much the same way that part IV of the Bill controls donations to registered parties. Those controls are important for the way in which campaigns are to be undertaken. They operate reasonably in general election campaigns and it is possible to apply them in referendum campaigns.

There is a difference between a foreign national spending money in his name and making a donation to a political party or to another player in a referendum. As my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary, Privy Council Office explained, article 10 of the European convention on human rights would preclude undue restrictions on the amount that a person may spend to put forward his views. Such considerations do not apply to donations.

1047 We want to apply regulation and a fair degree of control where we can. Where that is not possible because of article 10, we have chosen not to do so. That seems straightforward and reasonable. We do not need to withdraw the clause or the schedule.

10.30 pm

The hon. Gentleman makes essentially a technical point about the drafting. I shall consider it further, but I do not see any other way that we could have drafted the clause. He makes a not unreasonable point, and I shall reflect on it.