Recommendation 11

The Committee recognises the rationale behind advocating an expansion of the Electoral Commission’s investigatory and enforcement powers to provide maximum transparency to voters, incentivise regulatory compliance, and increase the pace of investigations and enforcement action. However, we believe more evidence is needed to ensure that any expanded powers for the Electoral Commission, such as powers to monitor and investigate in real-time and impose civil sanctions for breaches of candidate finance law, would not place disproportionate burdens on the largely voluntary workforce that support political campaigns.