Representation of the People Act 1983

29Payments by and to returning officer

(1)No consideration shall be given by or to a returning officer for the making out, receipt, delivery or return of the writ for a parliamentary election or, subject to the following provisions of this section, otherwise in connection with its execution.

(2)Nothing in subsection (1) above shall be taken as applying to any inclusive salary payable to a returning officer in respect of the office by virtue of which he becomes returning officer.

(3)The Treasury shall by statutory instrument prescribe a scale of maximum charges in respect of services rendered and expenses incurred by a returning officer for the purposes of or in connection with parliamentary elections, and may revise the scale as and when they think fit.

(4)A returning officer shall be entitled to his reasonable charges, not exceeding the sums specified in that scale, in respect of services and expenses of the several kinds so specified which have been properly rendered or incurred by him for the purposes of or in connection with a parliamentary election.

(5)The amount of any such charges shall be charged on and paid out of the Consolidated Fund on an account being submitted to the Treasury, but the Treasury may if they think fit, before payment, apply for the account to be taxed under the provisions of section 30 below.

(6)Where the superannuation contributions required to be paid by a local authority in respect of any person are increased by any fee paid under this section as part of a returning officer's charges at a parliamentary election, then on an account being submitted to the Treasury a sum equal to the increase shall be charged on and paid out of the Consolidated Fund to the authority.

(7)On the returning officer's request for an advance on account of his charges, the Treasury may, on such terms as they think fit, make such an advance.

(8)The Treasury may make regulations as to the time when and the manner and form in which accounts are to be rendered to them for the purposes of the payment of a returning officer's charges.