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Political Parties (Funding)

I am extremely grateful to the right hon. and learned Gentleman for what he has just said. He said that it is important that all parties move ahead to implement the Hayden Phillips recommendations. That is exactly our position and that of the Liberal Democrats, but it is not the position of the Conservative party. What is absolutely clear is that donation limits are an issue, and I shall come to the issue of trade union contributions. However, the fundamental issue that Hayden Phillips raised alongside those two was that of spending limits. The Conservative party was signed up to overall spending limits. When I made my oral statement on 15 March on the publication of Hayden Phillips's report, the right hon. Member for Maidenhead (Mrs. May), speaking for the Conservative party, said:"““We accept his main recommendations...we are happy to discuss spending caps on all year round non-election campaigning and proposals for tighter controls on third-party expenditure””.—[Official Report, 15 March 2007; Vol. 458, c. 469.]" The right hon. Member for Horsham endorsed that. It is, therefore, something of a surprise to all of us engaged in those negotiations—I am glad to hear that the right hon. and learned Member for Rushcliffe (Mr. Clarke) does not take the view of his party leader—to hear the Leader of the Opposition say that he does not believe"““a global spending limit year by year is right or necessary””." If the right hon. Member for Horsham is now ready to stand up and say that he accepts what he and the right hon. Member for Maidenhead accepted on 15 March, and not the position of the Leader of the Opposition, we can make good and consensual progress on this issue.