Key Points
- A coalition of crossbenchers has proposed an overhaul of Australia's electoral laws.
- The Fair and Transparent Elections Bill would ban donations over $1.5 million and force 'real-time' disclosures.
- The bill proposes stricter rules for political advertising but doesn't include an electoral campaign spending cap.
Several independent politicians have banded together to push for stricter limits and increased transparency for political donations, putting forward a bill that would see donations capped.
The Fair and Transparent Elections Bill proposes to ban donations over $1.5 million, lower the threshold for donation disclosure to $1,000 and implement more stringent rules to make political advertising more "truthful".
What transparency measures are currently in place?
Australia does have rules around reporting political donations at both state and federal levels, which aim to make large political donations visible to the public.
However, advocates for reform suggest that disclosure measures, especially at the federal level, are inadequate and ineffective.
The federal disclosure threshold for donations, about $15,000 at present, is quite high, according to Kate Griffiths, deputy program director for budgets and government at the Grattan Institute.
However, the key problem with the current disclosure regime is how long it takes for donations to be made public, Griffiths said.
"It could take up to 19 months for a big donation to be on the public record, and that's just much too late," she said.
"It means when Australians are actually considering policy issues or considering their vote in an election, they don't have the information about who's donating to the parties they're considering voting for."
Who's funding who?
In February, The Australian Electoral Commission published its latest data on political donations made in the 2022/23 financial year.
Clive Palmer's mining company Mineralogy topped the list, donating more than $7 million to Palmer's United Australia Party in 2022/23.
Other notable donations included investment company The Cormack Foundation, which gave close to $3.5 million to the Liberal Party in donations.
Perth-based company Hadley Holdings also donated over $1 million in total to Advance Australia, the lobby group which funded campaigning against the Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum.
Clive Palmer's mining company Mineralogy donated more than $7 million to Palmer's United Australia Party in 2022/23. Credit: AAP
What are the proposed changes?
One of the new bill's key proposals is a cap on donations, which would prevent any individual from donating more than approximately $1.5 million.
It would lower the federal disclosure threshold to $1,000, one of Labor's 2022 election promises, bringing it into line with NSW, Victoria and Queensland.
The bill also proposes 'real-time' donation disclosures and a ban on donations from certain industries and government contractors.
Independent senator David Pocock said these measures would go a long way to improve transparency.
"We need to get the balance right ... to ensure that we know where the money is coming from," he said.
During the 2021 election, Independent senator David Pocock challenged a misleading ad, which showed an image of him wearing a Greens party shirt. Source: Twitter / David Pocock
"Putting that information out in the public domain gives journalists, gives the parliament, gives the general public, the opportunity to call out where they think there might be undue influence."
The legislation also aims to put a stop to untrue, or misleading political ads.
Political marketing expert with the Australian National University Andrew Hughes told SBS News current regulation around political advertising is insufficient.
"You can really do anything you want with local advertising in Australia. Regardless of jurisdiction area … because it comes under political freedom of speech," he said.
What doesn't the bill cover?
The bill doesn't include a cap on electoral campaign spending.
For Griffiths, a cap on campaign spending could potentially have a significant impact.
"Limiting spending during elections would limit that arms race to raise more and more funds and ultimately reduces the influence of big money in Australian elections."
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said he is committed to improving transparency around political donations. Source: AAP / AAP
What's next for the crossbenchers' bill?
If the bill is adopted by the government, the crossbenchers have indicated they would support the legislation being passed by both houses of parliament.
This would allow the reforms to be implemented ahead of the next election in 2025.
While Labor has been exploring electoral reform in response to a parliamentary committee report tabled last year, it has not indicated which recommendations it will legislate.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he is committed to improving transparency through "reform that stays, not reform that comes in then goes with changes of government" — an indication that he is seeking the support of the Opposition for any changes.
