THE SNP have written to the Electoral Commission urging them to launch an investigation into foreign donations received by the Labour Party.
It comes after reports have suggested that Lord Alli – a friend of Keir Starmer’s who led the Labour’ election fundraising efforts – stepped in to prevent the party from proposing an outright ban on foreign donations to Westminster political parties.
Angela Rayner was reportedly planning to make the announcement in December 2023 according to a new book about Starmer’s leadership called Get In, The Times first reported.
Morgan McSweeney, now the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, had reportedly expressed support of the policy.
But a Labour official involved claimed in the book: “With a week to go Morgan pulled it… It turned out Waheed told Morgan to pull it, and so he did.”
Notably, an investigation last year by Open Democracy revealed that the Labour Party’s largest-ever donation – some £4 million - came from a hedge fund linked to the Cayman Islands.
The book also said it was unclear why Lord Alli intervened.
Now, SNP Westminster depute leader Pete Wishart has written to the Electoral Commission to demand a probe.
“Given the prominence of this £4 million donation to the Labour Party and these new revelations on the party’s sudden u-turn and decision not to ban foreign donations, I believe there are further grounds to warrant a fresh investigation into the Labour Party’s receipt and use of foreign donations,” the letter reads.
“If Lord Alli - as head of their fundraising campaign - felt it was so urgent to intervene to stop a change in Labour Party policy on foreign donations, the question naturally arises as to why?”
Wishart (above) added: “What was the extent, the nature and the origin of the donations that Lord Alli and the Labour Party were hoping to receive which meant that banning them couldn’t be countenanced?
“In addition to Lord Alli, both Angela Rayner and Gordon Brown have questions to answer as to why they dropped the policy of banning foreign donations so suddenly. What were they told by Lord Alli at the time and what information did they have about forthcoming foreign donations to the Labour Party?”
The SNP MP went on: “Given all these allegations and speculation, I believe there is a clear public interest in initiating a fresh investigation to finally uncover the full truth regarding the Labour Party’s relationship and reliance on foreign donations.”
A spokesperson for the Electoral Commission said: "We can confirm we have received a letter from the SNP and will consider the contents carefully in line with the commission’s remit."
Labour declined to comment but did point to their General Election manifesto, which states simply: "We will protect democracy by strengthening the rules around donations to political parties."
