The Transparency of Lobbying, Non-party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014 comes into force today, which limits the amount charities can spend on campaigning in the lead-up to the general election.

Charities planning to undertake campaigning activity need to register with the Electoral Commission, the introduction of the new regulation was delayed until after the Scottish referendum on independence.

When the bill was introduced last summer it met with fierce opposition from campaigning charities and the sector’s umbrella bodies. The campaign failed to get charities exempted from the new law but number of amendments were made before it gained Royal Assent earlier this year. Lord Harries who led the campaign in the Lords said that the sector got 70 per cent of what it wanted.

Labour has pledged to repeal the Lobbying Act and replace it with something else if it is elected next year. The Conservatives have committed to a review of the act after the 2015 election.