Deputy Prime Minister

Cabinet Office
70 Whitehall
London SW1A 2AS

29^th October 2012

Dear Nick,

I am writing to ask for your support over enforcing in full the Political Parties and Elections Act, particularly the requirement that personal donations over £7,500 come from those domiciled in the UK.

As you will know, this became law before the 2010 election, but has since been languishing on the statute books without enforcement, presumably for party political gain.

An Electoral Commission report in July 2009, while accepting that rules on non-dom party funding would not change before the 2010 election, seems to have understood that it would be given the powers to enforce the law before now.

If the government will not implement what has already been agreed, is it any wonder if the public have limited confidence in the intention to reform the system?

In 2009 you said: ‘I think if you are seeking to influence the outcome of the next general election... then it is wholly wrong that you basically seek to pay taxes only partially in this country.’

I strongly agree, so am disappointed that you have yet to issue a commencement order that would make this happen or use any political capital within the Coalition to press this issue.  

Lord Oakeshott described the non-enforcement of this law prior to the election as ‘like banning a drug-taking footballer but allowing him to play in the cup final’. A more apt description would now be not banning the footballer at all, but continuing to let him play for 90 minutes every week.

I hope you will find the time to stand up for fairness in party political funding. The easiest and simplest way to do this would be to enforce the rules that are already in place, and that have already been agreed by Parliament. I very much look forward to your response.

Yours sincerely,

Caroline Lucas MP, Brighton Pavilion