The National Security Bill has now been considered by the House of Lords and returned to the House of Commons on Monday.
The Lords had amended the Bill to include a requirement that political parties should identify donations coming from foreign powers, either directly or through intermediaries, and that such donations should be notified to the Electoral Commission. Conservative MPs were whipped to vote against this amendment but I voted in favour of it and I want to explain why.
The integrity of our democratic system is undermined when there is a lack of transparency as to how it is funded. It is also clear that there are some states which would seek to undermine UK democracy if allowed to use significant funds to do so. It is worth stressing that this amendment concerned donations from foreign powers (i.e. governments), not individuals. I was a member of the Committee on Standards in Public Life when it produced a report in 2021 expressing concern that the UK needed to do more to protect itself from foreign interference in our elections and I am currently a member of Parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee which takes a similar view. I see no evidence that the threat has diminished and I do not accept the argument, made by the Minister on Monday, that existing laws are adequate.
The amendment being considered would not be onerous for political parties to comply with (unless donations from foreign Governments were numerous, in which case a larger problem exists) and, if included in the law, would support necessary transparency about foreign donations.
That is why I voted in favour of it.
