POLITICAL PARTIES IN Ireland disclosed just over €200,000 in declarable political donations last year, with Sinn Féin leading the way with more than €80,000 in donations.

All registered political parties are required to provide a donation statement to the Standards in Public Office Commission by 31 March each year, and which covers the preceding year.

When a party receives a donation valued at over €100, this must be lodged into a political donations account within a recognised financial institution.

However, only donations valued at more than €1,500 must be disclosed to the Commission, including donations from the same source with a combined value of more than €1,500.

The maximum value of donations that a political party can accept from the same source within a calendar year is €2,500, and a disclosed donation must detail where it is coming from.

Meanwhile, a party may not accept a corporate or business donation in excess of €200 unless the donor is registered with the Commission on the Register of Corporate Donors.

There were 23 political parties registered in 2022.

Eight of these missed the original reporting deadline of 31 March, and three failed to submit the required statutory returns.

These three parties were Identity Ireland (which has since disbanded), Renua Ireland (since renamed as Centre Party of Ireland), and The National Party.

Disclosed political donations

Last year, the value of declarable donations which were disclosed by political parties here was €200,161.

Sinn Féin led the way with €80,190 worth of disclosed donations, with Fine Gael in second with €56,747.

This was followed by the Labour Party, which registered €27,850, and then the Green Party with €21,075.

Aontú and the Workers Party both registered €5,000 in disclosed donations, followed by Fianna Fáil on €2,500 and Solidarity – People Before Profit had disclosed donations of €1,800.

Most disclosed donations came from political figures within each respective party and Fianna Fáil’s only disclosed donation was also the only donation to come from a corporate source – Irish dairy business Dansko Foods.