Financial support for the Liberal Democrats is collapsing faster than their popular vote and they are relying on the boost from the general election to get taxpayer money to make up the shortfall, according to the latest returns to the Electoral Commission.
Like many troubled British banks, the party relied more on state subsidy than private sector cash – in the third quarter of this year, the Lib Dems got more than £375,000 from state funds compared to £352,000 from donations.
Private donations pushed the party below donations given to UKIP, which got £454,000 during the same period – and well below Labour and the Tories which received £2.2 and £3.7 million respectively. The Lib Dems’ largest donor is the Electoral Commission itself, which gave more than £352,000 for policy development under a formula based in part on how many votes they got in the 2010 general election. Like donations to other parliamentary parties, it is restricted and cannot be used for electioneering or campaigning. The rest of the state cash came from the Scottish Parliament. The party can no longer claim “Short money” now it is in government.
ts donor base is restricted to its core supporters, along with constituency associations, Lib Dem councillors, coalition ministers including Norman Baker and MPs such Adrian Sanders and Alan Beith.
Only one company, Bloomberg Tradebook Europe, gave any cash – some £25,000 plus a free £10,000 subscription to a Bloomberg service. PricewaterhouseCoopers, the accountants, gave £5000 worth of free research staff.
A Lib Dem spokesperson said: “The loss of Short money following the formation of the coalition Government has affected the party’s finances, but following a successful autumn conference, we are confident that our fundraising will go from strength to strength.”
The financial situation facing the party is equalled by recent performances in a number of council by-elections. In Rossendale in Lancashire, Labour held a seat with a majority of 181 and the Lib Dem candidate got just 10 votes. In Sandwell, Labour gained a seat from the Tories with a 23.9 per cent swing and 1,322 votes. The Lib Dem got 45. In Croxteth, Labour took a seat from the Lib Dems with a majority of more than 800. In Swindon, Labour took a seat from the Tories with a majority of 120 with the Lib Dems on 98.
