MPs have united to call for “robust legislation” to tighten the rules on political donations after fears that Elon Musk could still donate £80 million to Reform UK.
A viral petition with 140,000 signatures was debated in Parliament earlier this week to “remove loopholes that allow wealthy foreign individuals to make donations into UK political parties” and “cap all donations to a reasonable amount”.
Furious cross-party MPs gathered to discuss ways international figures like Elon Musk could be stopped from donating to parties through limited companies trading in Britain. Some urged the government to bring wholesale reform to the system by toughening up fines for breaking the rules and having a more accessible system to report donations regardless of the amount.
Leading the Westminster Hall debate, Labour MP Irene Campbell said: “Elon Musk proposed to donate a large sum to Reform UK and while he could not make a personal donation, there are ways he could possibly get around the rules.”
Lib Dem MP Jamie Stone labelled the idea of foreign donations “fundamentally dangerous”.
He told fellow MPs: “This strikes me as fundamentally dangerous. We call ourselves the mother of Parliaments, and we pride ourselves on the way we do democracy in this country. Every time such things are said to me, I feel that another little brick has been taken out of the edifice of what we do.”
Labour MP Emily Darlington specifically attacked Reform UK, saying: “We have people with backgrounds very much linked to tax havens, such as the billionaire property developer Nick Candy, who is one of the main fundraisers for the Reform party.
“He is also a link between the Reform party and Trump and Elon Musk. He was very clear when he told The New York Times, ‘We are going to have fund-raisers all over the world, in every part of the world where there are British nationals’- not necessarily British taxpayers.”
Lib Dem MP Manuela Perteghella added: “Our politics must serve the British people, not the privileged few. Every citizen deserves an equal voice, and protecting our democracy from undue influence is the test of our commitment to that principle. Let us act now.
“Let us introduce fair caps, close the loopholes and give our constituents confidence that their votes matter just as much as anyone else’s. If we want to restore faith in our democracy, we must show that it really belongs to the people.”
Responding to the petition created by Jeremy Stone, government minister Rushanara Ali said: “Foreign money has no place in the UK’s political system, which is why the law is clear that foreign donations are not permitted.”
She added: “Although it is clear that foreign donations to political parties and other campaigners are illegal, the government recognise the continued risk posed by actors who seek to interfere in our democratic process. The current rules no longer match the sophistication and perseverance of those who wish to undermine our laws, and that threat must be addressed through stronger safeguards. That is why the Government committed in our manifesto to strengthening the rules around donations to political parties, including through enhanced safeguards against foreign donations.
“We are considering a series of new measures that would achieve that, such as enhanced checks by recipients of donations and tighter controls on donors, including more restrictions around company donations.”
On Sunday, Electoral Commission chief executive Vijay Rangarajan urged the government to act, ideally this year, to limit company donations. He told the BBC’s Westminster Hour that “companies should only be able to donate something like the last couple of years’ worth of profits that they’ve made in the UK”.
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