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Political Parties and Elections Bill

I endorse my noble friend’s remarks. I add my support, too, to what the noble Lord, Lord Campbell-Savours, said, which is something that I have said in the past about allowing for tax relief but doing it on very small amounts. I am attracted by his suggestion that one can have a regulatory mechanism and increase the amount over time. Although it might seem like quite a technical amendment to some, it is worth stressing what has already been touched on. It is fundamental to the health of our political system. Political parties are at the heart of a healthy democracy. They aggregate opinion and provide the essential mechanism for accountability in the political process. Without them electors are lost; there is no accountability. We need to stress the fundamental role of parties but recognise that they are under threat at the moment, not least from a shift in the interests of electors to organise interest groups. Such groups help to absorb the energies; they are much more directed, so people are more willing to give to groups than to political parties. Interest groups enjoy no democratic legitimacy, but it is worth mentioning that some of them enjoy the tax advantages, as mentioned by the noble Lord, Lord Goodhart, that political parties do not. A case has been made that it is essential to try to help to sustain political parties within our political system, but as the noble Lord, Lord Campbell-Savours, has conceded, there is a certain public wariness about direct support from public funds, which is understandable. We already provide indirect support for a whole range of mechanisms, such as free mailing, election broadcasts, Short money and Cranborne money, so there is something coming indirectly. I concur with the argument against going down the route of direct public funding on which I am completely at one with my noble friend Lord Hodgson. I prefer the option embodied in the amendment for the reasons given by the noble Lord, Lord Goodhart, and my noble friend Lord MacGregor. It is essentially a democratic option in that electors choose how to allocate money. Capping the amount has been mentioned, which would encourage the parties to solicit funding from a wide range of supporters. Perhaps even Mrs Campbell-Savours senior will be solicited.