Trade Unions and the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act (2000) in the 2001 General Election: Tentative Third Parties and Trammelled Officers

British trade unions, mainly those affiliated to the Labour Party, but with increasing sophistication also those not so affiliated, playa major role in the conduct of general election campaigns. 1 In the 2001 general election, trade union campaigning took place within the framework of significant new legislation, the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act (2000), hereafter PPERA. PPERA followed recommendations from the Committee on Standards in Public Life, the Neill Committee, which conducted hearings on party funding and election expenditure during 1998 (HMSO, 1998a, 1998b). The legislation introduced new obligations in respect of trade union campaigning, among which two were of particular significance.