New rules finally put a ceiling on money in politics – but the cap is double what it should be
Incoming electoral reforms will cap the amounts parties can spend on election campaigning, but it’s still far too high. Here’s what the rules should be instead.
Australians will soon experience improved transparency of political donations and, for the first time, a ceiling on money in federal elections. This new rule aims to curb the "arms race" where parties and candidates compete to outspend rivals, often resulting in excessive spending that fuels wealthy interests' undue influence.
A recent Grattan Institute policy brief suggests that current caps may be set too high. While expenditure limits on political parties can reduce the incentive to fundraise and their dependency on major donors, the proposed cap of A$90 million per party per year is estimated to be more than double what is necessary. Advertisements by government agencies like the Australian Electoral Commission and Bureau of Statistics typically cost around A$30 million, indicating that a cap of A$40 million could still enable adequate communication with voters.
The new rules also impose caps on spending within individual electorates. However, a cap of $800,000 is deemed too low to facilitate new entrants into politics. Based on successful instances of recent new entrants, the institute recommends increasing the cap to A$1.2 million for new candidates and parties, with a 50% increase allowed post-election for all candidates.
By fine-tuning these expenditure limits, Australia can reduce the undue influence of money in politics and provide more opportunities for candidates from diverse backgrounds to compete in elections.
Written by urgent.news from The Conversation AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
