SL(5)157 – The National Assembly for Wales (Returning Officers’ Charges) (Amendment) Order 2017

Background and Purpose

This Order is made by the Welsh Ministers and provides for payments for services and expenses of returning officers in connection with the conduct of National Assembly for Wales elections.

Procedure

No procedure, and the Order does not have to be laid before the Assembly.

Scrutiny under Standing Order 21.7

The Order is a statutory instrument but because it does not have to be laid before the Assembly the Committee is not reporting under Standing Order 21.2 or 21.3.

The Committee has considered and reported on the Order under Standing Order 21.7(v) (as a legislative matter of a general nature within or relating to the competence of the Assembly or the Welsh Ministers).

Reporting points

The Committee notes the importance of this Order and the need to draw attention, in particular, to the amounts for “specified services” and “specified expenses” that may be recovered by a constituency returning officer at a contested Assembly constituency election.

The amounts are set out in article 4 of the Order (which inserts a new Schedule 1 into the National Assembly for Wales (Returning Officers’ Charges) Order 2016).

The “specified services” are:

(a) making arrangements for the election;

(b) conducting the election;

(c) discharging all of the constituency returning officer's duties in respect of the election.

The “specified expenses” are:

(a) the appointment and payment of persons to assist the constituency returning officer;

(b) travel and overnight subsistence for the constituency returning officer and any person appointed to assist the constituency returning officer;

(c) the costs of the nomination process;

(d) printing or otherwise producing the ballot papers;

(e) printing or otherwise producing or purchasing postal vote stationery;

(f) printing or otherwise producing, and arranging for the delivery of, poll cards;

(g) printing or otherwise producing and publishing all election notices and documents;

(h) renting, heating, lighting, cleaning, adapting or restoring any building or room;

(i) providing and transporting equipment;

(j) providing information and communications technology equipment and software and associated costs;

(k) providing security, including secure storage of ballot boxes, ballot papers and verification documents;

(l) conducting the verification and the count;

(m) providing and receiving training;

(n) providing stationery and meeting postage, telephone, printing, translation and banking costs and the costs of other miscellaneous items.

Legal Advisers

Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee

28 November 2017