The following memorandum by the Chief Electoral Officer has been submitted to me by the Minister for Home Affairs:

The following questions arise under Part XIV of the Commonwealth Electoral Acts 1902-1906-

1. Is a candidate for the Senate or House of Representatives legally entitled to pay a secretary or other person for clerical services rendered in connection with the expenditure authorised under section 170 of the Act (subject to the limitations imposed by section 169), and to include such payment under the several heads provided in section 170 or otherwise in the schedule of expenditure which he is required to render under the provisions of section 172 of the Act?
2. What interpretation should be placed on the words 'personal and reasonable living and travelling expenses of the candidate'?

While there is no specific provision in the Act for the payment of a secretary or clerk to a candidate for services rendered in connection with his candidature and the inclusion of such payment in the schedule of electoral expenses, it would seem that it can scarcely be intended that a candidate shall either perform all the purely clerical work in connection with his candidature with his own hand or through an unpaid agency, and, therefore, that the reasonable cost of such clerical work as may be incidental (say) to the publishing, issuing, and distributing of addresses, the hiring of buildings, etc., etc. provided for in section 170 might not unfairly be regarded as coming within the scope of that section.

No legal decision appears to have been given under the Commonwealth law as to the interpretation to be placed on the words 'personal and reasonable living and travelling expenses' occurring in section 171 of the Act, but the term 'personal expenditure' as applied to a candidate under the English law in similar circumstances has been held by the Courts to include 'the reasonable travelling expenses of the candidate and the reasonable expenses of his living at hotels or elsewhere for the purposes of and in relation to the election'.

I shall be glad if the Minister will approve of the advice of the Attorney-General's Department being sought.

It is contrary to the usual practice of this Department to advise on a question as to the interpretation of an Act unless a case involving the question has arisen. I propose, however, to advise generally on questions in this case.As regards question (a), I am of opinion that a candidate is entitled to pay for clerical work done in connection with any of the matters mentioned in section 170 of the Act, but that he is not, under that section, entitled to pay a secretary as such. The question to be decided in each case is, does the expenditure reasonably come within any item in the section? If it does, it is authorised; if it does not, it is not authorised.

As regards question (b), I am of opinion that the words 'personal and reasonable living and travelling expenses of the candidate' should be interpreted in accordance with their ordinary grammatical sense. The Act excepts from the definition of 'electoral expenses' all items falling within the words above mentioned. It is open to some doubt whether the word 'personal' applies to 'expenses' generally or only to 'living and travelling expenses'. I prefer the latter construction, and therefore am of opinion that all items of expenditure for living and travelling expenses, which are both personal and reasonable, are excepted from the definition, and a candidate is under no restriction as to the amount which he may expend in respect of them. The question whether any particular item falls within the exception is mainly a question of fact.

[Vol. 7, p. 325]