Conservatives top of the table for political donations
Electoral Commission data reveals that political parties received over £7.7 million of private donations in the last three months of 2016.
The Tories received the lion’s share of political donations, new figures reveal.
The Conservatives were given £3,610,983 in the last three months of 2016, the Electoral Commission has stated.
This compares with donations of £1,972,904 to the Liberal Democrats, and £1,970,055 to the Labour Party during the same period.
The Greens took in £46,228, the Co-operative Party £39,750, Ukip £33,228, and the Women’s Equality Party, £30,000.
In all, £7.7 million was donated to 11 political parties, a rise of £1.2 million over the third quarter of 2016 – but £1.5 million down on the same period in the previous year.
As well as donations, opposition parties were given £2.4 million from public funds.
The value of outstanding loans to political parties stood at £5,082,990 at the end of last year, which is an increase of £724,482 compared to the end of September 2016.
