Burnham to tackle 'mega-donors' in UK politics, minister says

The government led by Andy Burnham has expressed a strong commitment to addressing the issue of large-scale political donations from wealthy individuals, often referred to as “mega-donors.” Florence Eshalomi, a government minister, emphasized that a newly formed team is working quickly to devise a solution to this concern. This comes amid calls from some Members of Parliament for the immediate introduction of a cap on donations coming from within the UK, in addition to existing measures limiting contributions from British citizens residing abroad.

Currently, there is no restriction on the amounts that UK-based donors can contribute to political parties. The Labour government has already set an annual donation limit of £100,000 on British citizens living overseas, but many politicians argue that further limits should be applied domestically. Labour MP Stella Creasy highlighted that donations exceeding £1 million from individuals and companies have sharply increased over the past decade, citing various parties as examples. Among notable donors is Christopher Harborne, a billionaire businessman based in Thailand and one of Reform UK’s principal financial backers. Last year, he made a single donation of £9 million to Reform UK, which stands as the largest single contribution by a living individual to a UK political party.

In parliament, Creasy proposed amendments aimed at capping donations from UK-based sources, including an immediate donation limit of £500,000 to be reduced to £100,000 in the following calendar year. This measure also envisioned allowing ministers to set a permanent cap. Although the amendment received backing from over 60 MPs, it was not put forward for a vote. Creasy argued that “obscene wealth” increasingly influences whose voices are heard and what policies are prioritized, stressing the urgent need to act before the next general election. She also underscored that trade unions, which would be exempt from the cap due to established regulations and transparent funding, already represent “clean money.”

Opposition to these proposals came notably from Reform UK’s Danny Kruger, who criticized the Representation of the People Bill for being a partisan move targeting his party. Kruger also pointed out the substantial financial support that Labour receives from trade unions, suggesting this legislation unfairly restricts certain political groups. Reacting to criticism, Eshalomi affirmed that the bill includes measures intended to strengthen the political finance rules while still allowing legitimate donations to support election campaigns. She confirmed that addressing UK-based mega-donors remains a priority for the Prime Minister and that the government is keen to implement effective reforms swiftly once the task force finalizes its recommendations. Meanwhile, the bill itself has moved forward in the House of Commons and is expected to be reviewed further by the House of Lords

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