This petition was submitted during the 2017-2019 parliament
Rejected petition Protect our democracy: Strengthen penalties for breaking election law
The current election rules are so weak they don't deter cheating
The Government must
Increase the fine for breaching rules,
Ban foreign organisations & individuals from spending money in political campaigns;
Make political campaigns declare spending during or soon after the election
More details
The current maximum fine for breaking electoral rules is only £20,000. It's is a fraction of what political campaigns spend, so it is no deterrent. You can be fined more for touting tickets at a football match
Rules don't ban foreign organisations & individuals spending money on election or referendum campaigns, especially digital ads. There must be better rules on spending on digital ads, with spending declared during or just after a campaign not months later so campaigns are accountable
This petition was rejected
Why was this petition rejected?
It’s not clear what the petition is asking the UK Government or Parliament to do.
We understand you're concerned about electoral law but we're not sure exactly what you'd like the Government or Parliament to do. In particular, we're not sure exactly which rules you're concerned about.
We're not sure whether you want new rules with increased penalties. We're also not sure exactly what you mean by better rules on spending on digital ads.
You could start a new petition explaining clearly what changes you'd like to see.
We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.