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🇮🇱 Israel /Elections & Politics

UK tightens rules on overseas political donations to stop 'dodgy funding,' foreign influence

From Jerusalem Post · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

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  • The UK has strengthened rules on overseas political donations to prevent foreign influence and "dodgy funding."
  • New regulations require candidates to declare significant pre-candidacy donations and prove their legitimacy.
  • Individuals new to the UK must reside there for a year before making large political donations, and companies face stricter assessment criteria.

Britain has implemented stricter regulations on overseas political donations, aiming to safeguard its elections from foreign interference and "dodgy funding." These new rules follow a government review that identified persistent attempts by countries like Russia, China, and Iran to influence and undermine British democracy.

Under the revised rules, political candidates must now declare donations exceeding £2,230 received before they officially become candidates. They will also need to provide proof that such pre-candidacy funding originates from legitimate sources. Housing Minister Steve Reed stated that these measures represent "world-leading action to protect the integrity of our elections and tackle the threats we face from abroad."

dodgy funding

— Steve ReedHousing Minister, describing the type of funding the new rules aim to prevent.

Further tightening measures include a requirement for individuals newly relocating to the UK to reside permanently in the country for at least one year before they are eligible to make a political donation of £100,000 or more. Additionally, donations from companies will be evaluated based on their past post-tax profits rather than revenue, ensuring that only UK-linked businesses with legitimate financial standing can contribute. These changes build upon earlier reforms introduced in March, which capped overseas Britons' donations at £100,000 annually and temporarily banned crypto donations.

The review was prompted in part by an incident last year where a former politician from the Reform UK party was convicted for accepting bribes to deliver pro-Russia speeches. The leader of Reform UK, Nigel Farage, is currently under investigation by the parliamentary standards watchdog concerning a £5 million donation from a Thailand-based cryptocurrency billionaire made before Farage announced his candidacy.

By holding overseas donors to tougher standards and requiring candidates to prove where their funding comes from, we are taking world-leading action to protect the integrity of our elections and tackle the threats we face from abroad.

— Steve ReedHousing Minister, explaining the purpose of the new regulations.
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Originally published by Jerusalem Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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