Labour’s solution to funding scandal

Labour’s Mike Williams has a predictable solution to Labour’s illegal raid on the taxpayer for $400,000 of their election campaign. That is to legalise it!!

Yes he wants official state funding of political parties.

I favour going the other way. My solution would be to abolish the state contribution to election broadcasting expenses and restrict the parliamentary budgets during the last 90 days so they can not be spent on publications etc. Also to have slightly higher spending limits as the current limits are ridiculously low.

Mike Williams is also incorrect when he says that if the Auditor-General finds the pledge cards should not have been paid for by the Labour Leader’s budget, that the repayment comes from the very same budget the next year. Totally wrong. If it is found to have been outside the lawful purposes agreed to by the Parliamentary Service Commission, then either the party has to pay the costs of the pledge cards or the Leader would have to personally make reimbursement (as has happened in the past for some minor items) as they were the one who agreed to the expenditure.