Liberal Democrats fined £20,000 for failing to declare £184,000 of 2015 general election spending
The Electoral Commission calls for stronger powers after giving out the maximum fine AGAIN
THE LIBERAL Democrats have been fined £20,000 for failing to declare £184,000 of spending in the 2015 general election.
The Electoral Commission found 307 payments that were not declared in their returns from last year, after an investigation.
The news comes just weeks after the Commission fined Labour the same amount, the maximum fine possible, for failing to declare spending which included the momentous Ed Stone.
The Liberal Democrats said the result, which occurred under the former leader, Nick Clegg, was down to "human error".
The Commission say the maximum fine is not sufficient and are campaigning to get it raised to "an amount more proportionate" to the amount of money parties handle.
"With millions of pounds being spent by large parties looking to form national Governments, a fine of £20,000 is no longer a strong enough deterrent to ensure the rules are properly followed,” Bob Posner, from the Electoral Commission, said.
"This is an experienced party that failed to meet the basic requirements of the law, and cases like this undermine voters’ confidence in our political finance system," he added.
The party has also been referred to the police "of a possible criminal offence" should the party campaigns offer have knowingly signed a false declaration.
The party has until 12 December to pay the fine.
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A Liberal Democrat spokesperson said: "We always endeavour to ensure our reports of national campaign expenses are completed in full, in good time and according to all applicable rules.
"These mistakes, caused by issues with a small number of local accounting units, were a result of human error and failures of process.
"We are taking steps to ensure these mistakes are not repeated in future. We will co-operate fully with any investigation."
