Political Party Donations in Northern Ireland
Jonathan
Belfast
Transparency matters because in Northern Ireland citizens cannot see the names of the individuals and organisations that give large sums of money to their political parties. Citizens have no way of knowing who Party donors are, making it impossible to detect whether planning decisions are being affected by Party funders. Such an opaque system of public accountability exposes officials to speculation, rumours and question marks over their integrity. Reforming this current model of worst practice is fundamental to correcting a democratic deficit in Northern Ireland. We need to create an equal and clearer field of play which will help uphold the integrity of both the lobbyist and elected representatives. It is a necessary step to restoring public faith in our elected officials and system of governance in general.