Member

We have the politics that a few people pay for, and that is causing enormous damage. This measure, modest though it is, would be a step towards people feeling like they know what is happening. I remind noble Lords that, long ago, in an elections Bill, I tabled an amendment to say that no one could donate more than £1,000 a year to a political party or campaign. I suggest that we might have a quite different feel of politics if that had gone through. Given that it did not, and given that people donate hundreds of thousands of pounds, or even millions of pounds, to individual politicians and political parties, transparency—being able to see where decisions are made that are then going to affect the income and wealth of people to potentially massive extents—is surely crucial.