Apply to be a Parliamentary Candidate

• 1. Self-Assessment, training and gaining experience

  We would strongly recommend that you complete the self-assessment questionnaire included at the end of this document. This will allow you to judge how ready you are to go through the approvals process.

  If there are any areas in which you feel you would benefit from further training, or gaining practical experience before proceeding, contact the Candidates’ Office for recommendations on how to gain this. Some useful resources can also be found on the party’s online training portal here.

• 2. Application

  Once you feel satisfied with your answers to the self-assessment questionnaire, you should download and complete an Application Form and Code of Conduct.

  The application forms are very straightforward. They are used to ensure that you are who you say you are and that you are eligible to stand for Parliament. The application form does not form part of the assessment and is not seen by the assessors.

  Each candidate is charged a £75 Administration Fee to cover the cost of the assessment day, administration and to conduct a Digital Risk Assessment. If the cost would present you with any difficulties in proceeding with an application, please contact either your Regional Candidates' Chair (RCC) or the Candidates’ Office.

  When applying, you will be asked to provide the following information:

  • Contact details

  • Some basic background information

  • The contact details of three referees, one of which must be an office holder of a local, regional or state party within the Liberal Democrats

  • A signed declaration and code of conduct form

  The completed application form should be sent to the Candidates’ Office who will pass your details onto your Regional (or State) Candidates’ Chair (RCC/SCC).

  We will also require a Digital Risk Assessment (DRA) via a company called Social Media Check. The DRA will audit your online and social media history. Upon applying to be a candidate, you will be sent instructions on how to consent to Social Media Check undertaking the audit.

  Social media is a huge area of opportunity in a campaign but inappropriate comments can also derail a campaign and bring the Party into disrepute. If any issues arise from your DRA, your RCC will contact you to discuss and will then make a decision as to whether your application can proceed.

• 3. Assessment

  Once you have returned the completed application form and consented to your digital risk assessment you’ll be able to take your one hour online, open book policy paper which is the first stage of the assessment. Once you have passed this, and all of your administration is complete, you will be added to the list of people waiting for an Assessment Day place. There is an expectation that you will have completed all of the administration and untertaken you policy paper test within six months of applying. 

  Assessment Days take place online currently and our target is that all eligible applicants will be offered a place at an assessment day within nine months of handing in their forms.We will invite you to attend an Assessment Day as soon as there is a space available.

  The assessment day is based on the competency framework. This sets out the things we would expect a parliamentary candidate to do, and those things that a good candidate would probably not do. The assessment team does not see the information on your application form; they will base their assessment purely upon your performance during the assessment day.

  At the assessment day, you will take part in a variety of exercises designed to allow you to show the assessors how you would perform as a parliamentary candidate. Information about these exercises will be sent to you once you have returned your application forms to give you time to prepare.

  Key points to note:

  • The exercises are designed so that there is no “right” or “wrong” way to complete them.

  • Several different assessors will mark you over the course the assessment day. Assessors will be required to show evidence of your performance to support the grade they award you.

  • If you pass the assessment you will be approved immediately as a candidate. If you are not successful on the assessment day you will receive helpful feedback and be eligible to reapply in either 1 or 5 years, depending on your final mark.

• Westminster Seats

  To apply for a seat, you will follow these steps:

  1. Application

  Contact the Returning Officer (RO) who will send you an application form. Complete the application form and return it by the given deadline.

  2. Short-listing

  The Local Party Selection Committee will shortlist the applicants for the next stage. Sometimes this will require you to attend a short-listing interview.

  3. Campaign and Hustings

  If you are successfully short-listed, there is typically a period of three weeks during which you can campaign among local party members to persuade them to select you. At the end of the campaign, there will be a hustings meeting at which point the Local Party members will vote for their preferred candidate.

  If the Local Party selects you, then you will fight the next General Election for that seat. If you are not short-listed, or not selected, it is important not to be discouraged but to ensure you request feedback that you can learn from for the future.

• Scottish Parliament

  There are 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament which are split between two types:

  • 73 constituency-based seats elected by ‘first past the post’

  • 57 regional seats based on the boundaries of multiple constituency seats, elected using the d’Hondt, or closed party list, method.

  To stand in Scotland, candidates must have completed an assessment day and a Scottish policy assessment.

• Senedd Cymru

  The 60 seats in Senedd Cymru are split between two types:

  • 40 constituency constituency-based seats elected by ‘first past the post’

  • 20 regional seats (4 in each of 5 regions) that are elected using the d'Hondt, or closed party list, method.

  To be a candidate in Wales at either Assembly or Westminster elections, candidates must have completed an assessment day and the Welsh policy assessment. The selection for constituency seats takes place on a per constituency basis. The selection for regional list seats is done by a one-member, one-vote system across each region.

• 1. State Parties and Candidates Committees

  The approval and selection of Parliamentary Candidates is the constitutional responsibility of each of the three Federal State Parties of England, Scotland and Wales. Each State has an elected Candidates Committee, which takes the decisions and sets the policies that govern the processes of the approval, selection and review of their Parliamentary Candidates. In England, this is undertaken by the English Candidates Committee (ECC); in Scotland, the Scottish Campaigns and Candidates Committee (SC&C); and in Wales, the Welsh Candidates & Campaigns Committee (WCC).

• 2. State and Regional Candidates’ Chairs

  Each of these State Candidate Committees has an elected Chair who represents the Committee on a variety of bodies including the Joint States Candidates Committee (JSCC).

  In England, each region has a Regional Candidates’ Chair (RCC), who is responsible for organising assessment days, appointing Returning Officers (RO), and providing advice and support to members going through the approvals and selection processes.

• 3. The Candidates’ Office

  The staff in the Candidates’ Office are responsible for the day-to-day administration of the approvals process for the English, Scottish and Welsh Parties. They act as the first port of call for any general enquiry about standing as a Parliamentary Candidate, and can provide advice on the best person to speak with at a regional or state level if you have a more specific query.

Glossary

• Terms

  Here are some common acronyms that you may hear people using about approval and selection:

  PPC - Prospective Parliamentary Candidate - the person who will fight the seat for the Party at the next General Election

  PSPC – Prospective Scottish Parliamentary Candidate

  PAC – Prospective Assembly Candidate (Welsh Assembly)

  RO – Returning Officer - the person appointed by the region or state to make sure a selection is run fairly and according to the rules

  ECC - English Candidates’ Committee - oversees the approval and selection of Candidates in England

  SCC or C&C – Scottish Campaigns and Candidates’ Committee - oversees the approval and selection of Candidates in Scotland

  WCC or CCC – Welsh Candidates’ and Campaigns Committee - oversees the approval and selection of Candidates in Wales

  JSCC – Joint States’ Candidates’ Committee - co-ordinates the maintenance of standards in the approval and selection across all 3 States

  RCC - Regional Candidates’ Chair - a member of the Regional Executive who has responsibility for approval and selection in that region. They also provide support and help to candidates throughout the approval and selection processes

Self-Assessment Questionnaire