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The British people cannot be bought, but their views and votes can be heavily influenced by a flood of political party propaganda – from expensive advertising and constant leaflet drops to personalised online messages targeted directly at voters.
When I fought the election of 2010, there was a massive imbalance in spending. In 2007 we had inherited Labour party debts of £25m following the 2005 election – and with such tight finances Labour was able to spend only £8m in 2010, in contrast to the Conservatives’ £17m. We lost out in particular by being unable to invest in the new forms of online advertising coming on stream.
But the imbalances are likely to become even starker in future as the recent donations to Reform show. A decade ago, only 1% of individuals and companies making political donations gave of the order of £1m or more. By 2024, they accounted for over a third, at 35%. These latest record-breaking donations from crypto billionaires Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne are worth more than all donations to UK political parties in 2025 combined.
Spending more money at an election almost certainly leads to greater electoral success. This is worrying – and while the government recently tasked the Electoral Commission with reviewing campaign spending limits, more must be done. The reforms to election financing recommended by the Commission on the UK’s Future, which I chaired, and in particular a donation cap, should be introduced into the representation of the people bill now in the House of Lords.
Nearly half of voters, with few objecting, say they would view a party more favourably if it introduced a limit on political donations. Indeed, the very fact that money has been openly solicited in return for political access and, potentially, influence – as well as positions of public office and honours – exposes our democracy and weakens public trust.
A cap on individual donations was recommended by the independent Hayden Phillips review in 2007, by the Committee on Standards in Public Life in 2011 – and by an increasing number of senior politicians, including John Major. Indeed, in December 2025, the UK and at least 59 other countries co-sponsored a United Nations resolution that urges state parties to consider “limitations on donations … with a view to combating corruption”.
Other comparable democracies impose donation caps. Canada caps donations to political parties at about £930 annually; France caps donations to political parties at £6,400 annually and £3,900 for presidential campaigns; Italy’s cap is £85,600 per person or company annually.
“My gut feeling would suggest somewhere in the region of £500k,” Andy Burnham said just before he became prime minister, and in September Stella Creasy and 63 other MPs backed an amendment to the representation of the people bill, which was then withdrawn, to introduce an annual donation cap of £500,000, decreasing to £100,000 after one calendar year.
The new bill should include an enabling power for the secretary of state to set a cap on donations, having consulted the Ethics and Integrity Commission (formerly the Committee on Standards in Public Life) as well as the Electoral Commission.
Some want this cap to include donations by trade unions. But a collection of individual members who provide small contributions and can opt out do not pose the same level of risk to our democracy as multimillion-pound donations from private donors.
Outside general election years, Labour and Conservative party spending has recently been around £60m and £55m, respectively. Transparency International UK has calculated that before 2024, the total spend in election years was about £74m and £87m. In 2024, it says that Labour expenditure ballooned to a record-breaking £103m while the Conservative party spent less – just £74m. But paradoxically, this imbalance was made possible by the Conservative government’s decision to raise general election spending limits.
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Donors to the Labour party whom I have met favour a cap on donations; in fact, they say their recent larger-than-normal donations were made simply to even up the odds between political parties.
How would things change? Transparency International UK has made a tool to model the potential impact of donation caps on political party finances. Setting a donation cap of £50,000 per year, you can see the impact of reducing big-money donations. At the same time, there would still be sufficient funding for political parties to campaign effectively and fairly, without a need for additional public funds. It is now time to create such a level playing field.
The reform of political party funding should be the start of a major cleanup of our political system. It is quite wrong that about 100 paid lobbyists sit in an as yet unreformed House of Lords. And it is also wrong that the requirements placed on the lobbying industry to declare its activities are so weak. The British people deserve better.
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Gordon Brown was UK prime minister from 2007 to 2010
