Democracy is not
pay-to-play or cash-for-access

Political parties need funds to operate but democracy cannot be for sale. Ontarians already know that money influences politics in unhealthy ways. We have long agreed that we need to limit how money flows into political parties and have rules for how money is raised and how much can be spent. Without limits, we may end up with a government that is bought and paid for by the few with the most money.

We also direct quite a lot of public money to political parties. Although the money used by political parties comes primarily through private donations, a large percentage of those donations are refunded to donors through tax credits. Tax credits encourage private donors to give more generously by subsidizing their private donations. The effect is to direct public money where those private donors want it. 

We believe it is absolutely vital to fund political parties through public money to reduce the role of private money in politics. However, the most valuable thing citizens should be able to give a political party is their vote, and that funding of political parties should be based on a party’s level of electoral support. We advocate for a system that is fairer for citizens and taxpayers, such as a return to the per vote subsidy. 

What we need to avoid is a public financial system in which politicians spend more time and energy in the pursuit of money by engaging donors than engaging citizens. We wish to free politicians’ parties and politicians themselves from the fundraising treadmill so they can focus on the issues we care about rather than fundraising.