Column 04.09.26 - Protecting our democracy from foreign interference

The final stages of the Representation of the People Bill took place this week, and I wanted to share some thoughts about why this legislation really matters.

Our country’s democracy has been forged over centuries, but progress has been hard won. We should consider it sacrosanct. 

The integrity of our democracy matters, but foreign money puts it at risk: from the surreptitious but corrosive influence of malicious actors, whether it be states or individuals. 

This is a wide-ranging Bill, but I want to focus on some specific elements. I believe this Bill represents a necessary bulwark to protect a foundational principle of this country’s democracy: that it should be the people going to the ballot box on polling day that have the biggest say. 

Not billionaires living overseas, or hostile states seeking to interfere in our country’s electoral system. 

For example, donations made in cryptoassets are uniquely risky because they are hard to trace, facilitate rapid and borderless transfers, and can obscure the true source of funds. 

In theory, crypto payments are recorded on an open ledger that anyone can view and analyse. 

In an ideal world, that could mean complete traceability and far greater transparency than we have today, but, as is often the case, the reality is more complicated than that. 

Tracking a payment is not the same as identifying who or where that money came from, as this can involve huge numbers of transactions, across many jurisdictions. 

Crypto also offers those looking to slip through the net all manner of options for obscuring their identities. 

For those seeking to undermine our politics, destabilise our democracy, or buy our politicians, that is something uniquely valuable. 

Money that can’t be traced. 

This is not some imagined threat. It is very real. The spectre of foreign interference looming large over our politics is something we can all attest to. 

The choice is simple. We either take action now, with a moratorium on political donations made in cryptoassets, or we put our national security at risk. 

The Bill also includes a proposed cap on overseas donations. 

It is right that British people living overseas can contribute to our democratic system - be that through voting or donating to political parties. 

That is hugely important, and these changes will not stop British voters living abroad from fully participating in the democratic life of this country. 

However, if we want to safeguard the integrity of our electoral system, we must do everything we can to protect ourselves from the insidious threat of foreign money infiltrating and poisoning our politics. 

There is a profound difference between maintaining a connection to this country through our electoral system and using foreign money to shape its political future whilst living elsewhere. 

By introducing a minimum residency period before people can make large political donations, it will ensure such donations can only come from those with real, longstanding roots in this country. 

It should not be international crypto tycoons with little connection to the UK who decide our elections.

That right should be reserved for the people living here. The people who turn up to polling stations across the country. Who live under UK laws. Who pay taxes to the Exchequer. Who have a genuine stake in the future of this country. 

Our political donation laws were not created for the world we now live in, where geopolitical tensions and technological advancements have converged to give foreign actors both the means and motive to interfere in our politics. 

You have to wonder why Reform UK is desperately trying to protect this shady, pernicious and damaging practice. Selling off our politics to international crypto-billionaires is hardly patriotic, so what is in it for them?

This Bill is about protecting our democracy and national security, about making sure the British people are the ones in control of our country’s future.