Closed petition Ban all donations to, and state funding of, political parties

Closed on 19 December 2012

Politicians are lying when they say banning all donations would necessitate parties being funded by the taxpayer.

Why can't they fund themselves?

The Labour party has c.190,000 members paying fees of at least £2million per 5 year election cycle. The Tories have even more money. How much does it cost to create a website with their policies on it? What is the rest of the money is used for? propaganda and to drown out the voices of smaller parties/individuals.

Currently, most donations are given to the only 2 parties that have a chance of forming the government. Forcing parties to spend according to their means, i.e. income from their membership fees (which should also be limited to, for example, £10), would mean party funding would be more proportionate to membership/popularity and allow other parties to challenge the big 2, or at least keep them on their toes: what would we say if we only had 2 supermarkets to choose from? or 2 banks? or 2 utility suppliers?