Cross-party support for cap on campaign spending in local elections

ENVIRONMENT Minister John Gormley’s plan to introduce strict spending limits for candidates in next year’s local elections were boosted yesterday by cross-party support from TDs and senators.

Reviewing an Oireachtas report that suggests the more a candidate spends, the more likely they are to be elected, the minister said the actual spending limit and its governance needed to be teased out.

The report recommends a “level playing field” for candidates, with a spending cap, but warns against the danger of affecting voter turnout by reducing the profile of candidates.

Mr Gormley said the main outstanding issue with political parties was the period when the spending limit applies.

“It is a fact that the more you spend, the more votes you get,” Mr Gormley told an Oireachtas committee on the environment.

The Green Party leader pointed to the successful fundraising campaign for US presidential candidate Barack Obama.

Under current regulations, there are no spending limits for local election candidates, despite such restrictions for general and European elections. However, candidates must submit income and expenditure details to local authorities.

Whether different levels apply for candidates in city, county and town councils will also have to be decided on in any spending cap.

It is unclear how limits will affect spending by national parties alongside local candidates.

A decision must be made whether local authorities, the Standards in Public Office Commission or another body, will police the limits.

The number of councillors, 1,600, far outnumbers TDs, Senators and MEPs. There were also more than 3,200 candidates in the last local elections in 2004.

Fine Gael environment spokesperson Phil Hogan supported the plan for a spending cap: “Restricting expenditure will suit everybody, as there’s an awful lot of money wasted at elections.”

Labour spokesman on local government Ciarán Lynch said the lack of spending caps created an environment where corruption could breed.

Fianna Fáil’s Meath West TD Johnny Brady said it was “crazy” that candidates could spend up to €40,000, making it impossible for an ordinary person to compete as a candidate.

Committee chairman Pádraic McCormack agreed a spending limit was needed and pointed to the recent Lisbon Treaty referendum claiming a “cynical exercise” had occurred where people who had no interest in the vote had been involved in poster campaigns.

PD leader Ciaran Cannon questioned what the new system would cost taxpayers.

It is expected any new local election spending limits will need to be in place by early next year.