Latest political party donations in Northern Ireland published

31 Aug 2018 09:17 AM

Eight political parties registered in Northern Ireland reported accepting a total of £450,230 in donations and public funds between 1 April and 30 June 2018, according to figures published in Northern Ireland by the Electoral Commission.

The eight political parties to report donations and public funds were:

Party	Donations excluding public funds	Public funds	Total accepted in quarter 1 2018
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland	£36,561	£18,485	£55,046
Democratic Unionist Party (DUP)	£0.00	£213,832	£213,832
Green Party	£0.00	£14,067	£14,067
People Before Profit Alliance	£0.00	£8,137	£8,137
Sinn Féin	£17,000	£68,025	£85,025
Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP)	£0.00	£37,331	£37,331
Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV)	£0.00	£13,555	£13,555
Ulster Unionist Party (UUP)	£0.00	£23,237	£23,237
Total	£53,561	£396,669	£450,230

Four parties - Citizens Independent Social Thought Alliance, Veterans and People’s Party, WISE (Wales, Ireland, Scotland, and England) Reunited and the Democrats and Veterans Party - failed to meet the deadline for reporting donations for this quarter. The Commission will consider each of these matters in line with its Enforcement Policy.

Registered political parties in Northern Ireland are required to ensure that any donations received over £500 come from a permissible source. This can include individuals on the UK electoral register, Irish citizens or UK or Irish companies. Any donation to the central party with a value over £7,500 must be reported to the Electoral Commission on a quarterly basis. The party must also report any donations to accounting units over £1,500. Other regulated entities such as elected representatives are also required to report donations over £1,500 to the Commission.

Regular donations made to a political party or other regulated entity from the same source in the same calendar year must also be recorded and ‘aggregated’. Once this aggregated figure exceeds the threshold of £7,500 (or £1,500 for an accounting unit or other regulated entity) then it must be reported to the Commission.

Ann Watt, Head of the Electoral Commission in Northern Ireland said:

“This is the third time that we have published data on how much funding political parties in Northern Ireland are receiving. We welcome the public scrutiny and transparency this allows within our democratic process.

“However on this occasion it is disappointing to report that four parties failed to deliver their returns on time. Where there is no reasonable explanation for such a failure we will take a robust approach in line with our Enforcement Policy.”

For further information please the Electoral Commission press office on 028 9089 4023 or email press@electoralcommission.org.uk.

For out of hours queries, please call 07789 920 414.

Notes to editors

1. The Electoral Commission is the independent body which oversees elections and regulates political finance in the UK. We work to promote public confidence in the democratic process and ensure its integrity by:

• enabling the delivery of free and fair elections and referendums, focussing on the needs of electors and addressing the changing environment to ensure every vote remains secure and accessible
• regulating political finance – taking proactive steps to increase transparency, ensure compliance and pursue breaches
• using our expertise to make and advocate for changes to our democracy, aiming to improve fairness, transparency and efficiency

The Commission was set up in 2000 and reports to the UK and Scottish Parliaments.

2.  The Transparency of Donations and Loans etc. (Northern Ireland Political Parties) Order 2018 allows the Commission to publish information about donations and loans reported by Northern Ireland political parties and other regulated entities from 1 July 2017 onwards.

3. The Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (PPERA) requires registered parties to report cash and non-cash donations and borrowing to the Electoral Commission on a quarterly basis. Political parties must report all donations and borrowing over £7,500 relating to the central party, or over £1,500 relating to an accounting unit. This includes aggregates of donations and loans from the same source during the calendar year. Once the central party has reported a donation or aggregate donation over £7,500 it must report each subsequent donation of more than £1,500 from that source.

4. As the parties only report donations and loans over these thresholds, the figures do not include all donations and loans to political parties. Donations and loans under these thresholds are recorded in political parties’ annual Statements of Accounts. To view these accounts, visit our register here.

5. Public funds are donations from the House of Commons, the House of Lords, the Northern Ireland Assembly and the Electoral Commission. ‘Short’ and ‘Cranborne’ grants are available to parties in opposition in the House of Commons or House of Lords respectively.

6. Some donations appear on the register as being from the Electoral Commission. These are Policy Development Grants, which were established by the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 for parties represented in the Commons by two or more sitting members. The grants are intended to assist parties in developing the policies that they will present in an election manifesto. The legislation provides the total sum of £2 million annually for all eligible political parties for this purpose. Policy Development Grants became reportable as donations for the first time in quarter three of 2006 as a result of the Electoral Administration Act 2006.

7. Figures for income and expenditure have been rounded. Please see online database for exact amounts.