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Political Parties: Finance

Asked by Kevin HollinrakeConservativeMinistry of Housing, Communities and Local GovernmentTabled Answered 22 July 2025UIN 67913

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether she has had discussions with her (a) Welsh and (b) Scottish counterpart on the risk of foreign interference in the political process from hostile actors under provisions allowing foreign donations in those countries.

Answered by Jim McMahon

As pledged in our manifesto, we are strengthening the rules around donations to political parties. We have published our gov.uk ‘Strategy for Modern and Secure Elections’ which sets out a number of reforms we are making to strengthen rules on political donations, responding to the threat of foreign interference. These include “Know Your Donor” requirements for recipients of donations, tighter controls on company and unincorporated association donations, and enhanced transparency requirements for all donors to political parties.

We have engaged with Welsh and Scottish governments on the development of the reforms set out in this strategy.

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