UK ministers urged to cap political donations to ‘rebuild voter confidence’ | Party funding
Ahead of the introduction of the landmark election bill, campaigners said ministers should introduce legislation to impose limits on political donations to “rebuild voters’ confidence in democracy”.
The government is being called on to do more as it prepares to publish legislation early next year that will extend the franchise to 16 and 17-year-olds.
In a letter sent this week to communities secretary Steve Reed and democracy minister Samantha Dixon, 19 civic organizations said the “donation cap is the best way to protect our democracy and rebuild voters’ confidence in the system”.
Its signatories include the Electoral Reform Society, Transparency International, UK, Hope Not Hate and the UK Anti-Corruption Coalition.
The call comes weeks after Nigel Farage’s Reform UK revealed it had received £9 million from Thailand-based crypto investor Christopher Harborne, the largest donation by a living person to a British political party.
In addition to lowering the voting age to 16, ministers also plan to use the election law to reduce gaps in the financing of politics.
last summer, Government says it will tighten rules on political donations cracking down on shell companies and unincorporated associations and empowering the Electoral Commission to impose much larger fines, increasing the maximum penalty from £20,000 to £500,000.
The campaigners’ letter called on the government to use the bill to ban political donations made in cryptocurrency, after Ireland and Brazil took similar action.
The Guardian reported this month that ministers were investigating this amid growing concerns that cryptocurrency donations would compromise the integrity of the electoral system because it is difficult to trace where they come from. Farage’s party became the first to accept crypto donations earlier this year.
Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said in July that banning cryptocurrency donations was “absolutely something the Electoral Commission should consider” and that it was “very important that we know who is providing the donation”.
But ministers have so far refrained from legislating to cap political donations after considering a £100,000 cap proposal by the Public Policy Research Institute last year.
Like other major parties, Labor relies on private fundraising to fund its campaigns. Its biggest donors in recent years include former Autoglass boss Gary Lubner and green energy entrepreneur Dale Vince.
The letter also called on ministers to introduce legislation to introduce automatic voter registration, which has been piloted in Wales. The measure, which Labor officials have been exploring since they were in opposition, would see voters automatically added to the electoral register without having to actively register.
Campaigners say the move will boost voter turnout and boost the participation of renters and people from worse socioeconomic circumstances who are less likely to be registered to vote.
Finally, the letter called on ministers to protect the independence of the Electoral Commission after the Conservatives introduced legislation allowing ministers to set strategy and policy for the regulator.
The signatories warned that the Tory movement “creates serious risks of interference and political takeover” and that “while it may seem politically expedient to retain that power while in government, it is essential that independence be restored”.
Campaign groups that signed the letter to Reed and Dixon included Generation Rent, The 99% Organisation, Make Votes Matter, Black Equity Organization and the Byline Times website.
A report by Transparency International concluded that £56.6 million of donations in 2023 (66% of the total coming from private sources) will come from 19 mega-donors.
An MHCLG spokesman said: “Our election strategy sets out strict new rules on political donations, including plans to increase transparency and close loopholes for foreign funding, while modernizing UK democracy and ensuring it is preserved for future generations.”
