Article 60 Authorised excuses for failures as to return and declarationsI1
England and Wales
A candidate or an election agent may apply for relief under this article to the High Court, an election court or a county court.
Where an application is made under this article, the person or persons making the application must notify the Director of Public Prosecutions of the application, and the Director or the Director’s assistant or any barrister, advocate or solicitor duly appointed as the Director’s representative, may attend the hearing of the application and make representations at the hearing in respect of it.
Relief under this article may be granted—
to an individual candidate, in respect of any failure to deliver the return and declaration as to election expenses, or any part of them, or in respect of any error or false statement in them,
to an election agent of an individual candidate, in respect of any failure to deliver the return and declaration as to election expenses which the agent was required to deliver, or any part of them or in respect of any error or false statement in them, or
to a party list candidate, in respect of any failure to deliver the declaration as to personal expenses which the candidate is required to deliver, or in respect of any error or false statement in the declaration.
The application for relief may be made on the ground that the failure, error or false statement arose—
by reason of the applicant’s illness;
where the applicant is an individual candidate, by reason of the absence, death, illness or misconduct—
of the applicant’s election agent or sub-agent, or
of any clerk or officer of the applicant’s election agent or sub-agent;
where the applicant is an election agent—
by reason of the death or illness of any prior election agent of the candidate, or
by reason of the absence, death, illness or misconduct of any sub-agent, clerk or officer of any election agent of the candidate;
by reason of inadvertence or any reasonable cause of a like nature,
and not by reason of any want of good faith on the applicant’s part.
Subject to paragraph (6), the court may make such order for allowing an authorised excuse for the failure, error or false statement as it considers just.
The court may only make an order under paragraph (5)—
after the giving of such notice of the application in the Senedd constituency for which the election was held, as it considers fit, and
on production of such evidence of the grounds stated in the application and of the good faith of the application, and otherwise, as it considers fit.
The court must relieve the candidate from the consequences of the act or omission of the candidate’s election agent where it is proved to the court by a candidate—
that any act or omission of the election agent in relation to the return or declarations was without the consent or connivance of the candidate, and
that the candidate took all reasonable means for preventing the act or omission.
An order under paragraph (5) may make the allowance conditional on the making of the return and declaration in a modified form or within an extended time, and upon the compliance with such other terms as the court considers most likely to give effect to the requirements of this Part.
An order under paragraph (5) will relieve the applicant for the order from any liability or consequences under this Order in respect of the matter excused by the order.
The date of the order, or if conditions and terms are to be complied with, the date at which the applicant fully complies with them, is referred to in this Order as “the date of the allowance of an authorised excuse”.
Annotations
Commencement
- I1
Art. 60 in force at 18.7.2025, see art. 1(2)