Controversy
In December 2006 Prime Minister Tony Blair and politicians of other parties were questioned by police as part of their investigation into the Cash for Honours affair. Part of their time was said to be spent looking at whether the Act had been breached by parties taking loans from supporters in return for nominations to the House of Lords. Unlike donations, loans made on a commercial basis did not have to be made public as long as they were made on "commercial terms".
The Government has since changed the law to require the declaration of all forms of loans, and a former Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, Sir Hayden Phillips, has been asked to undertake a fundamental review of party funding arrangements.
In November 2007 the provisions of the Act were again the subject of scrutiny in the cases of Labour party donor David Abrahams and Scottish Labour leader Wendy Alexander.
Read more about this topic: Political Parties, Elections And Referendums Act 2000
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