Cash for Lib Dem peerages

WillParbury Wed Jan 02, 2008 at 11:05:10 AM GMT Print-friendly version Facebook

From The Times via Tom, this is all pretty damning stuff for the Lib Dems. Not least because the guy wanted to sit as a crossbencher rather than a lib dem.



There is also a wider point. With the media we have got, is it possible for people to give large amounts of money to political parties and their motives not to be called into question? Personally I think it’s not. Unfortunately their is not much in a free society that we can do about the media and nor should we want to. So then the debate comes round to the reform of party funding.

I think, although the public won’t like it, it will come to some measure of state funding for political parties. How we manage that and keep the union link meaningful is going to be a challenge but presently how the political parties are funded in the UK is not retaining public confidence and we need to act before we get to US levels of cynicism or a future Tory government.

From Parburypolitica 



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Cash for Lib Dem peerages | 5 comments (5 topical)

Re: Cash for Lib Dem peerages (#1)

by alexhilton on Wed Jan 02, 2008 at 11:25:25 AM GMT

How do we maintain the party's link with its own members with state funding?


Re: Cash for Lib Dem peerages (#2)

by WillParbury on Wed Jan 02, 2008 at 12:33:42 PM GMT

Actually the membership could become more important. Say the deal was no donors over £5000 but as compensation for this donation up to £250 would be doubled by the tax payer and donations over the £250 level would get 50% above the threashold.

Therefore someone could donate £100 and the taxpayer would double it so the party got £200. Alternatively if someone donated £500 the total donation would be £875.

The challenge is how to get some form of taxpayer subidy and keep the union link. We I think is vital but I doubt the tories would be willing to give up tory business donors and let the Labour party keep trade union money.
 


[ Parent ]

Re: Cash for Lib Dem peerages (#3)

by NorthernMonkey on Wed Jan 02, 2008 at 05:21:04 PM GMT

I agree Will, there should be state funding.

All party income should come from just two sources:

1) State funding - allocated annually based on proportion of votes cast in recent elections.
2) Small donations from party members - a maximum of £5000 a year each.


Re: No more state funding of political parties (#4)

by Peter Kenyon on Wed Jan 02, 2008 at 11:48:07 PM GMT

We Labour in government set up the Electoral Commission accountable to Parliament. One of its first tasks was to inquire in the funding of political parties. It recommended no significant change in the current arrangement, except for encouraging membership and small donations. Controversially, it recommended that all monies up to £200 per annum from an individual should  be matched  by the state IRRESPECTIVE of the tax status for the member/donor. Its considered findings have NEVER been debated in Parliament. Why? My speculation is that members are a problem for all our mainstream party political leaders. Too many politicians  think they are entitled to a living at the taxpayers' expense, and the idea of encouraging people to join a political party is so passe. After all why bother if there are enough of you in the  legislature  irrepective of party ready to vote more taxpayers' money for career politics. Sort of makes up for the difficulties of establishing and administering an ethical donations code as well as complying with the law. Or does it? That's Brown's current political dilemma. Yes, he claims to have a moral compass and to being a conviction politician. Well if he has and is, all he has to do is lay a Bill on electoral matters before Parliament in a few days time that omits any provisions for increased state funding of political parties and concentrates on one objective - capping spending. Or we can blunder on trying to encourage the Tories to join the Fagin team and pick the taxpayers' pocket. Even if the Lib-Dems supported Labour in the Commons, there will probably be insurmountable problems in the Lords. Meanwhile Lord Ashcroft and his ilk can continue to assist Conservative targetting of marginals. You don't exactly have to be visionary to work out how best to win back the trust of the electorate, do you?


Re: Cash for Lib Dem peerages (#5)

by RedRooster on Fri Jan 04, 2008 at 10:30:37 PM GMT

Hayden Phillips says that trades union affiliation fees could be treated differently than business donations:

“In seeking a possible solution, much will turn on the treatment of the decisions by individual trade union members to pay money to the party to which their union affiliates. In my view these payments may be regarded as individual donations for the purposes of the new limit if, and only if, the decisions reached are clearly transparent and it is possible to trace payments back to identifiable individuals. If this can be agreed, I believe this would be a reasonable outcome.” (p.10)

See page 10 of the Strengthening Democracy Report.

 


Cash for Lib Dem peerages | 5 comments (5 topical)