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Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill

moved Amendment No. 19:"Page 10, leave out lines 18 to 35." The noble Lord said: This amendment is of a piece with the previous amendment. We are concerned about the extension of permissible donors to citizens of the Irish Republic, not as an issue of principle but of practicality. In 2000, when the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act was progressing through Parliament, we recognised that, in the absence of any similar legislation in the Republic of Ireland, it would be ineffective to include Northern Ireland in the provisions of that Act, which banned political parties in Great Britain from receiving foreign donations—or so we thought at the time. We all accepted that parties which operated on an all-Ireland basis would be able to receive such donations from their offices in the Republic of Ireland. That logic still stands. By extending the definition of a permissible donor to include citizens of the Republic, we are recognising the unique relationship that the Republic of Ireland has with Northern Ireland. Yet the issue of principle does not concern us. What does concern us is how this is to be implemented. The Electoral Commission has also expressed concerns about these provisions. Its view is that,"““it is difficult to achieve openness and transparency with such a regime””." The commission has stated that it would like to see a clear definition of the acceptable tests of Irish citizenship in order for recipients of donations to check the permissibility of donors. It also states that, in particular, the legislation needs to make clear the extent to which the commission is to check political parties’ compliance with the requirements on donations; whether the commission will be asked to give an opinion on the extent to which political parties are observing the requirements; and what the commission is to do if it believes that one or more of the political parties has failed to comply with the law. We have what may seem like basic questions but I believe that it is necessary to have clear answers to them on the record. I should be grateful if the Minister could give the Committee a clear picture of the rules surrounding donations to political parties in the south. Is it just Irish citizens who can donate to political parties there, or can people who are merely residents but not actually citizens also donate? Is there a ban on foreign donations comparable with the ban that we have in the UK? Which body oversees donations in the Republic? Will the Electoral Commission have access to any records that it may have? What arrangements are the Government putting in place to allow the Electoral Commission to work effectively in this respect? We are not opposed to this provision per se, but we must ensure that donations to political parties are open and transparent. Therefore, unless we get some very clear and unambiguous answers to these questions, we cannot agree to such an extension. Will the Minister give an undertaking to address these issues with appropriate amendments on Report? I beg to move.