PN generated more income than PL in 2016... but still ended with €1.6m deficit

The Nationalist Party may indeed have paid all expenses incurred for the 3 June election campaign – as has been claimed by its leader Simon Busuttil – but the party finances remain dire with a deficit for 2016 alone amounting to €1,639,557. In 2015, the deficit stood at €2,497,805.

In comparison, the Labour Party registered a surplus of €40,031 for 2016.

Last year, the PN made €64,722 through membership and subscriptions – compared to the €75,942 in 2015 – whilst donations reached €979,319. 

The PL made €71,934 in memberships and subscriptions and managed to collect €630,590 in individual donations.

The PN raised just €190,867 through fundraising activities with expenses reaching €81,002; the PL on the other hand did not organise any fundraising activities.

In 2016, the party spent €351,694 in staff costs, €79,798 more than the previous year. Administration costs reached €204,244 – €84,600 more than that spent in 2015.

The Labour Party spent €375,811 on staff costs, and a further €122,019 on administration expenses.

The Nationalist Party’s initiative to seek financing from small loans of €10,000 on an interest rate of 4% netted €3,527,100 in borrowings from third parties.

For the year ending 31 December 2016, the PN had a total debt of €8,421,105, with the loans split as following: two bank loans of €415,210 and €2,894,005 respectively and borrowing from other related parties of €2 million. The borrowing from third parties – referring to the scheme popularly known as ‘cedoli’ – reached €3,527,100.

The money loaned under the scheme is repayable in full at the expiration of a ten-year period commencing from the date of signing of the loan agreement.

Reacting to their political rival’s accounts, the Labour Party accused the “PN clique of giving itself an unprecedented raise whilst sacking workers”.

It also pointed out that the accounts were submitted to the Electoral Commission two months late, and only after the general election had passed.

The PL added that the financial accounts belied outgoing PN leader Simon Busuttil: “Whilst he said that the PN was making profit, the truth shows otherwise.”

On its part, the PN accused the PL of resorting to lies, adding that the PL has not declared how much its electoral campaign cost. The PN has said that it spent €1.3 million on its electoral campaign.

The PN pointed out that it had launched a 15-year restructuring plan in 2014 to turn around its finances.