Thank you for contacting me about Amendment NC71 and the proposed cap on political donations.
I understand your concerns about political finance, and recognise the importance of ensuring that our democracy is not subject to subversive influences.
I do not support an arbitrary cap on donations such as that proposed by Amendment NC71. There is a long-standing principle that if you can vote for a political party, then you can donate to a political party. This was supported by the Committee on Standards in Public Life in 1998, which judged that 'permissible donors' are voters registered on the United Kingdom's Electoral Register. This is an important expression of freedom of association, and an arbitrary cap risks undermining this. There would also need to be a fair way to deal with corporate and Trade Union donations.
I do, however, welcome the strong transparency and compliance rules, which are backed by the law, that all parties must adhere to at all times. I firmly support the rule that any donations must only be from a permissible source, and that political parties must be responsible for checking the source of loans and donations over the value of £500.
Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.
