What are the political donation rules in the UK? This week the Observer spoke to our director of research, Jess Garland, about the inadequate rules surrounding party funding in Britain. As Jess told them: “the concern is that if the current rules aren’t updated,... Posted 04 Dec 2024
Freebies are just the tip of the Iceberg when it comes to money in politics The recent cacophony surrounding ‘freebies’ given by Labour party donors to Labour MPs since 2019 is just the latest in a long stream of financial scandals coming out of Westminster. It’s not just an issue... Posted 09 Oct 2024
How big donors fund our political parties Nearly a month back, at a time when candidates were still fighting for their seats, we reported on donations made to political parties during the first 3 weeks of campaigning for the 2024 general election.... Posted 13 Aug 2024
First three weeks of donation data show that money is attracted to power From the dissolution of Parliament through to polling day, political parties are legally required to report any large sums of money they receive in donations. Within the first three weeks of campaigning for the upcoming... Posted 03 Jul 2024
Electoral Commission chair calls out government on voter ID and finance loopholes In a recent, wide-ranging, interview with the Financial Times, John Pullinger, the chair of the Electoral Commission, expressed concerns about the government’s voter ID scheme and the threat to the Commission’s independence contained in the... Posted 25 Jan 2024
How do countries around the world deal with overseas voters? In October, legislation was introduced which would enable over 3 million more British citizens to vote. Wondering where the government have found 3 million extra voters? They’re the long-term UK diaspora, as the Guardian termed... Posted 08 Dec 2023
New political funding rules sneak in When people are asked about the problems with money in politics, few raise the issue of there not being enough. In fact, the public are deeply concerned about big money in politics with the majority... Posted 24 Nov 2023
There is a dangerous loophole in our political financing rules Shadowy dining clubs and millions of pounds in donations. This is the realm of ‘unincorporated associations’ one of the least-regulated areas of political finance in the UK. Last week, Politico reported that these little-known entities... Posted 12 Jun 2023
ERS Scotland: Our plans for the years ahead At ERS Scotland we are constantly monitoring the political seas and updating our course to make sure we have the proper heading. Following this year’s local elections, the elections to the Scottish Parliament in 2021,... Posted 24 May 2022
The Elections Bill could open the floodgates on party funding We’ve spoken a lot about the danger of the Elections Bill, which returned to the House of Lords today. From wasting £180 million a year on an intrusive ID card scheme for voting, to hobbling... Posted 23 Feb 2022