KEY POINTS:
The Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union has been effectively banned from political advertising for at least two months while the Electoral Commission considers an objection to its application to become a third party.
The union applied under the Electoral Finance Act at the end of January, but prominent blogger David Farrar objected, saying it was too involved with the workings of the Labour Party for it to be a third party.
The case has led to warnings for others who think they might face challenges to register early, rather than run the risk of being locked out of the debate close to the election while their cases are heard. The Electoral Commission is expected to consider the matter further at its April meeting, meaning the EPMU cannot undertake any political advertising for two months while it waits.
EPMU national secretary Andrew Little said he had predicted an objection and had applied early in the year so the union's campaign would not be affected closer to the election.
If the EPMU loses, it can still spend up to $12,000 - the threshold after which a group must list as a third party, but cannot spend up to the $120,000 limit. It can also still run ads on issues such as workers' rights but will run the risk of being challenged for crossing a line into election advertising.
Mr Little said EPMU election year ads tended to be more political.
"We want to do a big thing about wages and incomes and how the legal framework affects that. But there's a high likelihood we would say something negative about National so we need to be registered as a third party if we are to do that."
Mr Farrar - a former National Party staffer who is a vocal opponent of the Electoral Finance Act - is also the financial agent of the Free Speech Coalition Trust, which is a listed third party.
"It's fortunate the EPMU put their application in early because it looks like it will take a couple of months to resolve. The worry is if someone applies to register closer to the election, they could lose a lot of the time available to them if someone objects."
Mr Farrar's objection is on a provision in the Electoral Finance Act which says those involved in the administration of a party or candidate are ineligible to be third parties.
The EPMU is an affiliate of the Labour Party and Mr Little is vice-president of its affiliates group and represents union interests on the party's council.
Electoral Commission chief executive Helena Catt said it had sought further information on the case and would discuss it at the April 2 meeting.
It was a test case and the commission had to decide how to interpret the clause in question, as well as look at how closely the EPMU was involved with Labour's organisation.
In a letter to the Electoral Commission, Mr Little said the EPMU was a separate body from the Labour Party and while some EPMU members and officials were also on party committees and councils, they did so in their personal capacity rather than representing the EPMU. He said the union held 41 of 700 total delegate votes so was not dominant within the party.
The losing side can also seek a judicial review of the decision.
The banning provision was not in the initial bill but was added to prevent possible conflicts of interest.
It was also intended to stop those working for parties - such as campaign directors and financial agents - also registering as third parties to beat the system.
