Political Parties and election expenses: online publication of information

STATES OF JERSEY

POLITICAL PARTIES AND ELECTION EXPENSES: ONLINE PUBLICATION OF INFORMATION

Lodged au Greffe on 6th February 2026 by Deputy M.R. Scott of St. Brelade Earliest date for debate: 10th March 2026

STATES GREFFE

2026  P.28

PROPOSITION

THE STATES are asked to decide whether they are of opinion

to request the Privileges and Procedures Committee, in consultation with the Judicial Greffier and the Jersey Electoral Authority, to undertake the necessary legislative changes for debate before the next public election in 2030, to require the online publication of –

1. the register of political parties and the statements of accounts of all political parties; and
2. declarations of donations of over £500 in value relating to any public election, whether received by individual candidates or by political parties, any such declarations to be made a prescribed period from receipt and before such public election.

DEPUTY M.R. SCOTT OF ST. BRELADE

REPORT

The purpose of this Proposition is to increase the transparency of major financiers of political candidates and political parties by requiring disclosures of their identities (a) online and (b) prior to the elections in which the relevant candidate is to stand or the party is to field any candidate.

Part (a)

Article 11 of the Political Parties (Registration) (Jersey) Law 2008 allows the public to inspect the Register of Political Parties held by the Judicial Greffe and, on payment of a fee, a copy of the constitution and accounts of a registered party can be obtained.

Access is, at present, limited to the opening hours of the Judicial Greffe. Publishing documentation online would ensure that information is available instantly to a much wider audience. Other advantages of online publication include, but are not limited to, the ability to meet the needs of users with disabilities, the opportunity to rapidly update changes in respect of the parties, and to provide a search function for users.

Part (b)

The  Public Elections (Expenditure and Donations) (Jersey) Law 2014 at Article 6 requires a candidate to make declarations in respect of donations received. Article 13A addresses declarations for donations to political parties. However, it does not require individual candidates to make a declaration until before the end of a 4-week period after the election. Conversely, political parties must make such a declaration within 4 weeks of receipt (which nevertheless may be a date after an election). This means that voters may not know who the main sponsors are for electorate candidates until after the election.

This proposition seeks to bring declarations of both independent and political party candidates in line, ensuring that substantial donations (in excess of £500) are declared to the Jersey Electoral Authority in advance of an election for both individual candidates and political parties, therefore ensuring that the public have knowledge of the donor prior to an election. This information will provide the public with greater transparency surrounding financial backers of candidates (be they individuals or party members) which could better inform their voting decisions.

The imposition of time limits for declaring donations aims to prevent delays in the information becoming available to the public which will again be enhanced by online publication.

Financial and staffing implications

The actions requested within this proposition will need to be undertaken by the subsequent PPC, however the staffing time required for consultation and law drafting should remain within existing budgets.

The requirements on the Judicial Greffe and Jersey Electoral Authority to publish the documentation will need to be identified and fully established during the consultation process, however it is anticipated that this should be achievable with existing budgets.

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P.28/2026

Children's Rights Impact Assessment

I consider that this proposition has no direct or indirect impact on children and that the duty to have due regard to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child does not arise. Accordingly, a Children's Rights Impact Assessment is not required under the Children (Convention Rights) (Jersey) Law 2022.