SA government proposes ‘world-leading’ laws to ban political parties from receiving electoral donations

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The South Australian government has unveiled plans to ban political donations and is calling on state, territory, and federal governments to follow suit. The state government plans to introduce these laws but concedes the proposed reforms could be subject to a High Court challenge.

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00:00Electoral donations and gifts to political parties, candidates and members of parliament

00:06would be banned under proposed laws, which have been described as world-leading by the

00:11South Australian Government.

00:13Under the proposed reforms, loans would also be banned unless they came from a bank or

00:16other financial institution.

00:18In a bid to ensure new parties and candidates are not disadvantaged, they would be entitled

00:22to get donations of up to $2,700, and the Government also wants to reduce the spending

00:28caps imposed on political candidates in the lead-up to a state election.

00:33Those found in breach of these proposed donation laws could face significant penalties, up

00:37to a $50,000 fine or 10 years in prison.

00:41These laws were first promised by the SA Labor Party at the 2022 state election, when the

00:46then opposition leader Peter Malinowskis argued the move was necessary to restore trust in

00:51democracy.

00:53The now Premier spoke on ABC News Breakfast this morning and said he still stands by that.

00:58And I think that's something that the community has wanted to see for some time.

01:02I don't think the people of South Australia want their Premier or their local MP spending

01:09time, you know, having lunches and dinners with donors, they'd rather their MP spending

01:14time engaging with constituents.

01:17Mr Malinowskis has warned the proposed laws could face a high court challenge, given the

01:21fact that the court has determined the act of giving a political donation as a form of

01:26political communication.

01:28The laws are now out for a month of public consultation and the government says it's

01:32hopeful they'll be in effect ahead of the next state election in 2026.

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