LOANS TO POLITICAL PARTIES AND HONOURS

Early day motion 1828, tabled 16 March 2006 by Bob Spink (Conservative). Signed by 18 members.

That this House calls for the Electoral Commission to bring forward recommendations to provide for the declaration of loans to political parties, whether or not they are intended to be repaid, on the same basis as donations, including proposals for amendment of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 if necessary; further calls for the Department for Constitutional Affairs to establish an inquiry to determine whether the recommendation of Mr Chai Patel for a peerage was linked to his provision of finance for the Labour Party and at what stage the Prime Minister, and other senior members of the Labour Party, were first informed of the loan from Mr Patel to the party; and urges the Committee for Standards in Public Life to consider both the status of loans to political parties and the relationship between political party funding and honours.

Signatures by party: Labour 10, Liberal Democrat 5, Conservative 2, Plaid Cymru 1.