AEC to release election campaign costs

4:57p.m. 11 May 2008

The cost of campaigning in last year's federal election will be revealed on Monday when the Australian Electoral Commission releases disclosure returns of candidates, Senate groups and donors.

But the figures will not include campaign spending for major parties and their candidates, as officially endorsed candidates can roll their reporting into their party's annual return.

Nor will the figures contain details of union spending on the anti-Work Choices campaign.

Members of the public will have to wait until next February to find out how much the parties spent and what the unions poured into their campaign.

Under current laws, candidates must submit details of the total of all donations received and used to fund their campaigns, as well as details of donations of more than $10,500 from a single source.

But party candidates can submit a "nil return" and include their report in their party's annual return, due for public release next February.

Of the 1,421 candidates who stood last year, more than 1,000 have lodged a nil return.

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