# Candidate Tax Transparency Bill 2019

**A
BILL
TO**

Increase transparency in elections by mandating the publication of tax returns of political candidates.

*BE IT ENACTED by the Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—*

**Section 1: Tax record transparency provisions for candidates**

(1) Any candidate running in an election for the House of Commons must submit complete tax records from the past ten years, to the extent such are available, to the Electoral Commission alongside their nomination form and deposit.

(2) The Electoral Commission shall make readily available to the public all such submitted records in good time before the given election.

**Section 2: Extent, commencement, and short title**

(1) This Act shall extend across the United Kingdom.

(2) This Act shall come into force immediately after receiving Royal Assent.

(2) This Act may be cited as Candidate Tax Transparency Act 2019
.

***

**This bill was submitted by /u/WineRedPsy on behalf of the Phoenix Committee**

Mr. Speaker.

This is a pretty straightforward bill. Candidates have to make public all their tax records from ten years back upon running.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

# Recall of MPs (By Constituency Demand) Bill

**A
BILL
TO**

Amend the Recall of MPs Act 2019 with provisions for petition for the recall of an MP given demand by a portion of the constituency.

*BE IT ENACTED by the Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—*

**Section 1: Amendment**

(1) In section 3 of the Recall of MPs Act 2019, add the following:

> (3) The Petition Officer will additionally be obliged to open a special petition for the recall of an MP if at least 5% of the electorate in the MP’s constituency submits a signed appeal demanding so, of which at least 20 people have supplied a deposit of £100.

> (4) Once the petition officer has opened the recall petition it shall be open for a period of 12 weeks. If at least 25% of the electorate in the constituency signs the petition, the MP will lose their seat and a by-election will be triggered. The recalled MP is eligible to stand in this by-election.

> (5) If a Special Recall petition is successful, sums equivalent to the deposits are returned to the signatories of the appeal. Otherwise, all deposits are paid to the Treasury.

(2) In section 4 of the 2019 Act, add the following:

> (2) A Special Recall petition, as described in section 1 subsection 3 and 4 of this act, shall be terminated only if the MP’s seat is made vacant or if a general election is held within 6 months. In both of these cases, sums equivalent to the deposits are returned to signatories of the appeal.

**Section 2: Extent, commencement, and short title**

(1) This Act shall extend across United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

(2) This Act shall come into force immediately after receiving Royal Assent.

(2) This Act may be cited as "Recall of MPs (By Constituency Demand) Act 2019".

***

**This bill was submitted by /uWineRedPsy on behalf of the Phoenix Committee**

Mr. Speaker,

As it is, once an MP is elected, they sit safe until the next election. During that period there is no way for their constituents to hold them accountable. It is my firm belief that a representative who fears the people will have bigger reason to carry out the will of the people, and so I am with this bill proposing a way for constituents to trigger recall petitions as per the Recall of MPs Act 2019.

That said, such a procedure is not to be started frivolously, and so what is essentially a petition to start the petition is needed of which signatories must pay a deposit. The proportion of the electorate that needs to support this kind of special recall petition is increased to a whole fourth of the constituency. This means that the special recall petition will be a logistically much bigger affair, and so the time of the petition is extended.