23 June 2009

State paid € 13.7 Million to political Parties

Latest figures from the Standards in Public Office Commission (SPOC), an independent body established in December 2001, show that the State has provided political parties in Ireland with € 13.7 million of special funding last year.

The parties shared € 5.6 million under the Electoral Acts and € 8.1 million in Party Leaders' Allowances.

In addition, each Independent TD received an allowance of € 41,000, while each Independent Senator got € 23,383.

Money from the state funding cannot be used for electoral or referendum purposes. It has to be accounted for by each party in statements to the SPOC. An exception is made for the Independent TDs and Senators, who do not have to provide Statements of Expenditure.

Last year the various Irish parties received the following sums in state funding:
Fianna Fáil - € 5 million
Fine Gael - € 4.3 million
Labour Party - € 3.1 million.
Sinn Féin - € 800,000
Green Party - € 740,000
Progressive Democrats * - € 450,00
* The Progressive Democrats (PD) are now defunct. But since they still existed last year - at least officially (although they were de facto already a dead party) - they did qualify for the annual state funding.

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