Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraphs 2 and 67 onwards of her Department's document entitled Representation of the People Bill ECHR Memorandum for the Bill as introduced in the House of Lords, published on 3 September 2026, and her Department's press release entitled Tough new rules to crackdown on foreign money in UK elections, published on 6 July 2026, whether an assessment was made of the compatibility of the proposed retrospective application of the overseas contributors donation cap UK residency test and the associated criminal offences with the European Convention on Human Rights.

I refer the hon. Member to the letter addressed to Representatives of Political Parties dated 6 July and published on gov.uk here, which sets out the retrospectivity of the overseas contributor cap, as well as the minimum residency period.

The Government is of the view that the provisions of the Representation of the People Bill, including clauses related to overseas contributors, are compatible with the Convention rights.