{"id":75913,"date":"2024-06-18T20:41:18","date_gmt":"2024-06-18T20:41:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/06\/18\/what-are-the-rules-around-political-donations-do-they-change-for-an-election-and-can-parties-give-back-money\/"},"modified":"2024-06-18T20:41:18","modified_gmt":"2024-06-18T20:41:18","slug":"what-are-the-rules-around-political-donations-do-they-change-for-an-election-and-can-parties-give-back-money","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.talkwithrattan.com\/index.php\/2024\/06\/18\/what-are-the-rules-around-political-donations-do-they-change-for-an-election-and-can-parties-give-back-money\/","title":{"rendered":"What are the rules around political donations, do they change for an election and can parties give back money?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"What<\/div>


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It’s an election campaign – and that means political donations have ramped up.<\/p>\n

What exactly are the rules on donations? Do they change for elections? Who gets the most money? Why do people donate? And can parties give funds back?<\/p>\n

Here, we explain:<\/p>\n

What are the rules on donations during non-election periods?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Politics and money is a rabbit hole that Lewis Carroll would be jealous of, and the UK’s system is no different.<\/p>\n

One of the most important things to note is that the figures are on a much smaller scale to those in the US – in the tens of millions rather than billions.<\/p>\n

One key distinction is that donations to MPs are different to political party donations.<\/p>\n

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<\/div>
\n Image:<\/span>
\n Frank Hester has given millions to the Conservatives. Pic: PA
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\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

MPs have to declare all their interests on a public register, which can be easily searched using the Sky News Westminster Accounts tool<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

The rules for these donations require all contributions over \u00a311,180 to be declared. This was recently increased<\/strong><\/a> from a threshold of \u00a37,500.<\/p>\n

Money donated to political parties in this fashion goes into their accounts but, according to Professor Justin Fisher, an expert in political finance at Brunel University, it does not need to be “ring-fenced” so there is often no way to see what donations are spent on.<\/p>\n

The body responsible for regulating and setting standards for donations and party finances is the Electoral Commission.<\/p>\n

Read more:
Sunak appears to rule out handing back Hester money<\/a>
Labour enjoys best year ever for individual donations<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

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\n
\n \"Politics
\n <\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n <\/div>\n
\n Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge<\/span><\/p>\n

Sky News Monday to Thursday at 7pm.
\nWatch live on Sky channel 501, Freeview 233, Virgin 602, the Sky News website and app or YouTube.\n<\/p>\n

Tap here for more<\/a>\n <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Are there different rules for elections?<\/strong><\/p>\n

In short – yes, there are many different restrictions.<\/p>\n

The increase in the lower limit for the declaration of donations occurred as an update to financial restrictions that had been untouched for two decades.<\/p>\n

The spending limit for parties during elections also increased. For a party contesting all 650 UK seats, it went from around \u00a318m to just over \u00a335m.<\/p>\n

However, as no party contests every seat, the effective limit is just over \u00a334m.<\/p>\n