Labour could be ruined by proposed cap on political donations

[dipsydoodle]

The independent standards watchdog is said to have agreed to recommend a new limit on donations, introducing an annual cap with figures ranging from £50,000 to £10,000 being considered. Such a move, in an attempt to clean up political funding, would end the six- and seven-figure donations to the Labour party from its union sponsors, as well as the Tories' reliance on the richest city financiers.

An analysis of five and a half years' worth of donations to the parties reveals the move would most dramatically affect Labour's funding base. If the £50,000 limit had been in place over the period, Labour's donations would have been reduced by 72%, the Conservatives' by 37% and the Liberal Democrats' by 25%.

A source close to the Committee on Standards in Public Life, which has been reviewing the party funding system and is due to report in October, said it was trying to find a way to impose a cap without bankrupting any one party.

Some committee members are arguing for more public funding for political parties, but most believe this is not achievable in the current economic climate. The debate now appears to rest on whether union money should be treated as single large donations or as multiple small donations from individual members' affiliation fees, and whether those affiliation fees should automatically go to Labour.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2011/aug/30/labour-ruined-by-cap-donations

I would think that if union money was not to be treated as single large donations as opposed to multiple small donations from individual members then individual members would in fact have to state to which party their contribution would go.

[LeftishBrit]

1. Depressing, But let's hope that people have enough sense to reject the evil that is the Tory party

even if they get more money donations.

I would suggest that this means that more anti-Tories should make small contributions as individuals to Labour (or in some cases smaller parties) on their own behalf. But of course in this economic climate, many won't be able to afford to - and those who *can* afford to are precisely the ones who are more likely to vote Tory. Grrr.

I suspect that some of this comes from general union-bashing on the part of the government.