Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)

The Electoral (Amendment)(Political Funding) Bill, which I am commending to the House, while not the longest legislation the Seanad has ever debated, is one of the most significant. When enacted, it will change fundamentally the way politics is funded and conducted in Ireland. Corporate donations will be severely curtailed, the books of political parties will be opened up to public scrutiny, the maximum amount that can be accepted as a political donation will be more than halved and there will be greater openness, with significant reductions in the thresholds for the public declaration of political donations. Other measures in the Bill provide for greater transparency by donors and those in receipt of political donations.

The people have a right to know how their political system and political parties are funded. This Bill goes further than any previous legislation in asserting that right. Excessive and secretive corporate funding of politics is corrosive to democracy and to public trust in politics. Most people who have reflected on the funding of political parties have come to the conclusion that corporate donations need to be restricted. It is better to have a system of funding based on a large number of small donations from citizens rather than a small number of large donations from big business, which is what this Bill sets out to achieve.

Ireland is a member of the Council of Europe Group of States Against Corruption, GRECO. In 2009, this body undertook an evaluation study of Ireland's political system, specifically examining the issue of party funding.

Among the recommendations made was that all registered political parties should prepare independently audited accounts which would be made public in a timely and accessible way. It was also recommended that consideration be given to lowering the current disclosure threshold for political donations. Similar proposals have been made by the Standards in Public Office Commission.