The Scottish Parliament (Assistance for Registered Political Parties) Order 1999

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order makes provision for the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB), established by section 21 of the Scotland Act 1998 (“the Act”), to make payments (“financial assistance”) in accordance with the Order to qualifying parties for the purpose of assisting members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) connected with those parties to perform their Parliamentary duties. Qualifying parties are registered political parties with whom any MSP is connected (article 1(2)).

The Order provides that, for the purposes of section 97 of the Act (under which the Order is made) and of the Order an MSP and a registered political party are to be regarded as connected if the MSP was returned at the previous general election, or at a subsequent election to fill a constituency vacancy, after contesting it as a candidate for that party or was included in the party’s regional list for that general election and as such was returned to fill a subsequent regional vacancy (article 1(3)).

The Order fixes the maximum amount that may be paid to any qualifying party in any period by reference to the number of MSPs connected with that party multiplied by a fixed amount and provides for that amount to be increased annually in line with increases in the retail prices index (article 2).

The Order also provides that the fact that any MSPs who are connected with a qualifying party are also members of the Scottish Executive (MSEs) or junior Scottish Ministers (JSMs) is to be disregarded for the purposes of section 97(2) of the Act (which would otherwise prevent payments being made in such cases) if the number of such MSPs connected with that party who are also MSEs or JSMs is not more than one fifth of the total number of MSEs and JSMs. The Order also provides that in calculating the total amount payable to such parties under the Order any MSPs connected with that party who are also MSEs or JSMs are to be disregarded (article 3).

The remaining provisions of the order are supplementary.