Charities have been asked to respond to a review of third party campaigning which will assess the effect of the Lobbying Act on independence of voice in the sector.
The Third Party Campaigning Review, chaired by Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts, is preparing to send out surveys in order to gather evidence in the run up to the general election.
There are three surveys: one intended for third parties, one for candidates and another for returning officers. In a statement, Hodgson said that the surveys should take between 5-10 minutes to complete and could be completed by June 7.
Hodgson’s statement also outlined what the review’s “next steps on engagement” will be:
• A call for evidence, intended to capture views in a more discursive manner, which will be launched post-election;
• Roundtables, to obtain further views; and
• Focus groups, to test emerging findings.
The Lobbying Act
Lord Hodgson was appointed to review the effects of the Lobbying Act on the ability of the voluntary sector and others to advocate to government in January of this year.
His review was to investigate whether or not party political campaigning is “undertaken in an open and transparent way” and that it complies with the “need to maintain public trust and confidence in the regulatory regime governing third parties”.
Hodgson's review has also been assessing whether charities and other third parties who undertake campaigning activities have fully understood and complied with regulatory rules.
In cases where Lobbying Act legislation has not been adhered to, he has examined whether appropriate enforcement activity has been carried out by the regulator.
The Lobbying Act has been widely condemned by the voluntary sector since it was passed into law last year as the The Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act.
