Historic white paper on party financing launched

For the first time ever, political parties will be obliged to declare and register donations above €10,000, while any donations above €50,000 emanating from the same source will be prohibited. These are among the proposals included in the white paper on party financing launched today.

165 years after the first general election was held in Malta, government today launched a white paper to regulate the financing of political parties and candidates. Malta, is the only country in Europe, alongside Albania, not to have a law regulating party financing.

"Following the introduction of laws which removed the prescription on crimes committed by politicians and protect whistleblowers, we are now introducing a party financing law," junior minister Owen Bonnici said.

Parliamentary secretary for justice Owen Bonnici, together with Law Commissioner Franco Debono launched a white paper which among others aims at regulating private donations to parties and candidates, the expenditure during electoral campaigns and the internal structures of political parties.

Debono who had authored a draft law when a parliamentary assistant under the previous administration, was part of the working group which included Bonnici, the Attorney General Peter Grech and Malta's representative on the Council of Europe Group of States against Corruption (GRECO), Lara Lanfranco.

The white paper's five sections deal with; the regulation of political parties' statutes, the registration of parties with the electoral commission, streamlining the parties' accounts, the regulation of donations by private individuals or companies and the regulation of parties' expenditure during electoral campaigns.

For the time being, state aid is being excluded, although both Bonnici and Debono did not exclude discussing this during the consultation process.

"We first want to introduce transparency and accountability within political parties, only after having such structures in lace can we then discuss the introduction of state aid," Debono said.

For the first time ever, the white paper envisages the introduction of thresholds to private donations, while it also proposes the revision of the inadequate amounts political parties and candidates are allowed to spend during campaigns.

The white paper is proposing that donations below €500 in one calendar year do not need to be registered and donators will remain anonymous while donations, sponsorships and services rendered to parties which amount to €500 or more need to be registered.

Although these proposals are still open to discussion, the draft law proposes that single donators cannot give parties or candidates more than €50,000 in 12 months. Donations between €10,000 and €50,000 need to be registered in the party's accounts and these details together with the name and address of the donator need to be passed on to the Electoral Commission.

The white paper is also proposing that the paltry amounts candidates are currently allowed to spend in an electoral campaign be revised upwards. The ceiling for general elections is set to increase from €1,400 to €25,000.

The proposed ceiling for European elections is €50,000 while that for local elections is €5,000.

The law is expected to be introduced before parliament's summer recess, following a consultation period which will include the submission of proposals by all stakeholders and the public by March and a number of meetings with Alternattiva Demokratika, Labour, PN and the electoral commission.