When Queensland Labor changed election funding laws in 2020, experts and integrity advocates praised the move as some of the strongest reforms in the country to deal with political donations and campaign spending.
But not all were happy. While the caps effectively hobbled further Clive Palmer-style election spending sprees, the LNP labelled them “a full-frontal assault on the democratic process”.
The argument was, and is, that the laws benefit Labor due to the party’s heavy union support. But with talk of change again should the LNP take power, how does this argument stack up? Two charts give us a good idea – even if a third is months away.
Election ads from the Rail, Tram and Bus Union and Australian Institute of Progress – both registered third-parties in the campaign – outside the City Hall early voting booth this week. Credit: Cameron Atfield
While the laws were changed and campaign spending caps put in place before the 2020 election (not without some questions about the process), caps on political donations did not immediately apply.
At this election, the per-donor limit of $4000 to a registered political party, or $6000 to a candidate or a group endorsed by a party, applies to the money pouring in for election-related advertising or research over a period stretching back to July 2022.
(It is worth noting that parties have ways to bypass........