Skip to main content

The Guardian view on political donations: Labour must lead the way on reform | Editorial

Scandal is hard-wired into a system that makes parties over-reliant on mega-donors, as the opposition will discover soon enough

Some political controversies are complicated. The row about offensive remarks made by Frank Hester, a businessman and Conservative donor, is not in that category. What he said was simply racist – declaring an impulse of hatred for all black women induced by the fact of Diane Abbott MP being a black woman. He says he abhors racism. Downing Street belatedly acknowledged the problem, although some Tory MPs still don’t get it. The main reason for such obtuseness is also not complicated. Mr Hester gave the party £10m.

The pernicious influence that big money can have on politics is something voters intuitively understand and don’t like. Not all party donations are crudely transactional. Some philanthropists feel a duty to finance democracy. But there are all kinds of access advantages and policy favours potentially available from proximity to power that might make party funding feel like a worthwhile business investment.

Continue reading...

from The Guardian https://ift.tt/Edc9WDk
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

England booed off after failing against Iceland once more in Euros warm-up

It was a long way from being the triumphant Euro 2024 send-off for Gareth Southgate and his England players at a sold-out and increasingly fretful Wembley. Never mind the result because it was not the main thing, however much it stirred memories of you-know-when against Iceland. It was the performance that raised the difficult questions, the worst one for quite some time and at exactly the wrong time. The home fans, thousands of whom made for the exits before the end, were forced to watch the second half – from about minute 55 onwards – through the gaps between their fingers. And it had not been great before that. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/4ndfQL0
Post a Comment
Read more

Trump to campaign in 4 states - including in Biden's hometown - during week of Democratic National Convention

Trump plans to hold a series of events next week in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Arizona as Democrats nominate Joe Biden for president.             from USATODAY - News Top Stories https://ift.tt/3al6qn7
Post a Comment
Read more

Mugs, flags, biscuit tins: coronation generates a princely sum for UK business

Sales expected to top £250m as factories work overtime to produce merchandise for King Charles’s celebrations In Stoke-on-Trent, the potters are working seven days a week, while in Knaresborough strings of bunting are whizzing through machines. In London, icing “artists” are painstakingly decorating Westminster Abbey-shaped biscuits. It’s a race against time to fill customer orders as the clock ticks down to King Charles III’s coronation . Buoyed up by the public’s enthusiasm for last year’s platinum jubilee , businesses are cranking out memorabilia, decorations and party food ahead of the blockbuster royal event. Continue reading... from The Guardian https://ift.tt/PRU7vkS
Post a Comment
Read more