Centre Party wants EUR 15,000 limit on individual campaign donations
Greens also support ceiling, National Coalition Party sharply opposed
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Election funding proposals promised by Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen (Centre) for Wednesday this week will require some negotiation among parties in the government.
For instance, the Centre Party wants to place a limit of EUR 15,000 on contributions from an individual donor. The Green League also supports such a ceiling, while the National Coalition Party sharply opposes such a move.
Vanhanen promised early Friday that the government’s statement to Parliament on Wednesday will give some general lines on election funding reform. This means that the government parties should find a common policy line on the matter before Wednesday.
The Centre’s demands are quite strong, but there is room to negotiate.
Centre Party Secretary Jarmo Korhonen says that the party executive has taken the line that parties need to be able to show that they are keeping track of incoming revenues and outgoing expenses in real time, all the time, allowing outsiders to check, at any time, on the sources of the party’s income, what the money is used for, and for what reason.
The party is also calling for full real-time openness in the cash flow of companies and foundations with close ties to political parties.
The Centre Party also wants the possibility to monitor the repayment of election campaign loans.
The Centre Party wants to ban election campaign contributions from non-profit organisations and state-owned companies. Korhonen would also be willing to consider a ban on donations from private business and labour unions to parties. On the practical level this would mean that political parties would depend exclusively on state subsidies and donations from private individuals.
Parties get about EUR 18 million in state subsidies each year. Separate election subsidies no longer exist.
Under the Centre Party’s vision, all individual donations of EUR 2,000 or more would have to be disclosed, and violations of the rules on campaign contributions would result in the cancellation of state subsidies for the party.
Donors would also be expected to agree to complete openness about who receives their support.
The Green League takes a similar view as the Centre Party.
In addition to mandatory disclosure of all contributions over EUR 2,000, the Greens want both an upper limit for individual donations, and for an entire campaign.
Campaign contributions in which the donor gets something in return (seminar tickets, art work, etc.) would also fall within the realm of mandatory disclosure.
The National Coalition Party sharply opposes upper limits on political donations. The idea for a ceiling on an entire campaign is especially difficult for the party, but it also opposes restrictions on individual donations.
The party would find it easier to accept extreme openness than limits on donations - even to the point of mandatory disclosure of even the smallest donations.
New rules on election campaign funding are being drawn up by a working group headed by Lauri Tarasti.
The working group includes representatives of all four government parties, as well as four opposition parties and four expert members.
Even though the government is taking a head start of its own on the matter, the working group plans to issue its proposals independently. “Only four of the 12 members are from government parties”, Tarasti notes.
The deadline for the working group was the end of September, but Tarasti says that the proposal will not be ready until October.
“The situation has changed constantly, and the points of view have changed along with them. Therefore there have been no possibilities to make decisions, which has postponed the completion of the work”, Tarasti says.
The idea of an upper limit on donations is the biggest bone of contention in Tarasti’s working group as well.
More on this subject:
 Vanhanen refuses to accept sole responsibility for election funding row
Previously in HS International Edition:
Chair of campaign finance working group doubts effectiveness of punishment (17.6.2008)
Helsingin Sanomat
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