European Parliament Elections 2009

H. What are not election expenses?

2.36 Items which are not election expenses include:

(i) the cost of purchasing copies of the register of electors;

(ii) the reasonable living expenses (including accommodation) of a candidate and volunteers working on his/her behalf. Under this heading, in addition to accommodation costs, spending of up to €50 per person per day on refreshments, etc., is permitted and does not have to be accounted for. It is expected that election agents will exercise reasonable control over this expenditure and make participants aware of the position;

(iii) any sum disbursed by any individual out of the individual's own resources for any minor expenses (not exceeding €126.97 in any one payment) lawfully incurred in relation to the election if the said sum is not repaid to the person. See paragraph 2.38 below for further elaboration on this;

(iv) election expenses incurred at a previous Dáil, European or local election which were disclosed in an Election Expenses Statement furnished to the Standards Commission or to a local authority. See paragraphs 2.39 to 2.40 below for further information relating to this;

(v) free post service provided to candidates. It should be noted that only the postage costs are not regarded as an election expense. The cost of producing the leaflet/election address/Litir um Thoghcháin is an election expense;

(vi) a free service provided by an individual, including use of the individual's motor vehicle, telephone, etc., where the service is not provided as part of the individual's work or business;

The Standards Commission has previously given the following advice in relation to this particular provision of the Act:

This provision of the Act refers specifically to an individual and to the use of an individual's motor vehicle (singular). If more than one vehicle is provided by an individual, the use of the additional vehicles may be regarded as election expenses. If a vehicle which is in the ownership of a company, partnership, business etc. is provided to a candidate it is not regarded as a free service provided by an individual. In such circumstances the use of the vehicle during the election period is regarded as an election expense. The commercial cost of hiring a similar vehicle for a similar period must be ascertained for the purposes of calculating the election expense.

Where an outgoing MEPs staff or Oireachtas member's staff (i.e. personal assistant, research assistant, etc.) takes annual leave and works on a candidate's election campaign on a voluntary basis during the election period, the work carried out by the member of staff will be deemed to have been carried out as a free service and the cost of his/her salary while working voluntarily will not be regarded as election expenses for the purposes of the Act.

(vii) a service provided at an election by an employee of a political party, including use of the individual's motor vehicle, where the employee's remuneration is paid for out of party resources or out of public funds and where the employee is not in receipt of any reward or benefit in kind other than his or her normal remuneration (including recoupment of expenses) for that service. Where overtime payments are normally paid to an employee of a political party for working additional hours, this is regarded as "normal remuneration" and is not regarded as an election expense;

(viii) normal media coverage and the transmission on radio or television of a broadcast on behalf of a candidate or a political party. This does not cover any production, or other, costs associated with a transmission on radio or television;

(ix) the services of an accountant or other person who is employed for the specific purpose of ensuring compliance with the requirements of the Act;

(x) the use of offices which are owned by a political party and are made available to a candidate for use at the election. It is not necessary to attribute a notional rental cost to the use of such offices. The costs of heat, light, telephones, etc., incurred for electoral purposes at such offices during the election period are election expenses.

2.37 Examples of some items which are not election expenses and which were recorded as election expenses at previous elections are set out in Appendix 3.

Minor expenses

2.38 The only persons who may lawfully incur expenses or make payments at an election in relation to a candidate are the election agent of a candidate, the national agent of a political party, or a person authorised by either agent to incur election expenses. Accordingly, any other person who incurs expenses or makes payments at an election on behalf of a candidate is committing an offence. Election agents must maintain a record of all "minor expenses" which are not been accounted for as an election expense in his/her Election Expenses Statement (see paras 2.43 to 2.48).  In order to deal with any questions which may arise as to why expenses in respect of particular items used during the election period are not shown as an election expense in the Election Expenses Statement, a record of all such "minor expenses" may be required to be furnished to the Standards Commission. Invoices, receipts and vouchers in respect of minor expenses may also be required and should be retained by the election agent. Minor expenses are not included in the calculation of the total election expenses incurred.

Re-using election material

2.39 If election expenses in relation to material used at the election have already been recorded in an Election Expenses Statement expenses in respect of a previous Dáil, European or local election, there is no need to record these expenses again. This does not apply to material used in relation to a referendum.

2.40 If a candidate intends to use, or re-use, election material which has already been accounted for in an Election Expenses Statement, his/her election agent must notify the Standards Commission Secretariat and provide details of the materials being re-used and the Election Expenses Statement on which they were previously accounted.

Expenses incurred in order to facilitate a person's candidacy at the election

2.41 Certain expenses may have to be incurred on behalf of the candidate in order to facilitate his/her participation in the election process or an understanding of the relevant legislation. The Standards Commission does not regard such expenses as being part of a candidate's or a political party's election spending. Examples might include:

1. additional childcare costs;
2. cost of work replacements;
3. leave of absence with pay;
4. loan interest and bank charges;
5. costs associated with meetings convened to familiarise election participants with the requirements of electoral legislation (e.g. room hire, documents, refreshments, travel);

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