Money and fair politics don't mix

Sinn Féin should be stopped raising money in the US and everywhere else, as should all political parties

Gerry Adams has protested the refusal to grant him a visa to the United States to raise money there for Sinn Féin. The protest has no validity. He and Sinn Féin should not be allowed to raise money in the US for the party. In fact, they should not be allowed to raise money anywhere, through any means.

People in America, willing to offer money to Sinn Féin, have no entitlement to influence the Irish electoral process, north or south. Only people in Ireland have that entitlement and only they should be permitted to influence election outcomes. Therefore, the raising of money anywhere abroad for any of the parties operating here is wrong and should be stopped by legislation. This applies not just to Sinn Féin but also to the other parties that have raised money in the US, including Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael.

In fact, the raising of money at home to fund political parties should be stopped as well. All fundraising should be stopped, whether abroad or at home. There is a fundamental unfairness in a system whereby parties that represent the interests of the rich have an advantage over parties representing the interests of people who cannot afford to finance political parties. And, whatever the protestation, finance does afford an advantage, in terms of opinion polling, marketing, research, the staffing of offices and campaigns.

The Progressive Democrats are celebrating their 20th anniversary at present. That party was founded on an avalanche of cash that poured in at its inception. Rich people and relatively rich people perceived, correctly, that the Progressive Democrats would represent their interests and they contributed lavishly, at least in the beginnings of that party, to its coffers. They have not been disappointed. The Progressive Democrats have delivered in income tax cuts, capital gains tax cuts, plus opportunities for spectacular enrichment in the property boom.

Democratic Left was founded a few years later, from the embers of The Workers Party. Democratic Left purported to represent the interests of people who were poor. No avalanche of funds poured into that party's coffers because those with money perceived (perhaps wrongly) that the Democratic Left people would not represent their interests.

A fair political system demands that parties are funded equally and this can be done only by the State on a fair basis. It demands that all candidates who obtain the sanction of, say, 500 electors in their constituency, get access to equal funds, which may or may not be pooled in the case of parties. In the interim between elections, parties should be funded on the basis of their electoral support, with a proviso that newly emerging parties that attract the support – via signatures – of, say, 10,000 electors, get an agreed funding as well.

It is the only fair basis for the funding of political parties. The standard objection that the electorate would not condone such expenditure of public monies on political parties would be unlikely to carry weight if the electorate understood this was the only fair way of ensuring fair elections and fair representation.