Elections: Campaigns
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 121 of the policy paper entitled Restoring trust in our democracy: Our strategy for modern and secure elections, published on 17 July 2025, what criteria her Department plans use to determine the certain political entities that will be required to include (a) information about party affiliation or (b) a statement of independence in their campaigning materials.
Answered by Samantha Dixon
Under the current imprint regime, campaigners are required to include an imprint with their name and address on printed and digital campaigning material.
While these rules have improved transparency, there remain cases both in digital and print formats where campaigning material has been designed to mislead, such as by mimicking local newspapers or using branding designed to obscure a candidate’s true party affiliation. In such cases, the current rules have not always provided voters with sufficient clarity about who is behind the material or the purpose it serves.
We intend to address this by requiring campaigning material promoted by or on behalf of candidates and elected office holders to include information about party affiliation – or a statement of independence where applicable. This additional transparency will help voters better understand the origin and intent of the material they see, enabling them to make political choices with greater confidence.
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