23/12/09 - Report to Ceann Comhairle re European Elections of 5 June 2009 (pdf and text versions)

Guidelines and advice

The Electoral Act provides that the Standards Commission may publish Guidelines or give advice to any person to whom a provision of the Act applies. A person must act in compliance with the advice given or Guidelines published, unless by so doing he/she would be contravening another provision of the Act. In May 2009, the Standards Commission published Guidelines for the European Parliament elections.

The Guidelines contained 4 chapters -

• Chapter 1 dealt with the requirements attaching to candidates at the elections.
• Chapter 2 concerned the duties and responsibilities of the election agents of candidates with regard to spending at the elections.
• Chapter 3 set out the duties and responsibilities attaching to the national agents of political parties with candidates contesting the elections.
• Chapter 4 outlined the rules relating to "Third Parties", "Other Persons" and the publishers of newspapers, magazines, etc., in connection with the elections.

Appendices to the Guidelines contained details of legal definitions of terms used, advice regarding the treatment of the proceeds of fund-raising events and examples of items which are often incorrectly included as election expenses. 

Circulation of the Guidelines began immediately to all candidates and election agents whose details were known to the Standards Commission at the time.  The published Guidelines were also sent to the national agent of each political party with candidates contesting the elections.

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