Parties bathe in large donations
The treasurers of most parties in the Bundestag can be satisfied with 2023. Compared to the previous year, there were more than twice as many large donations. The CSU received the largest single donation: around 565,000 euros.
The major parties represented in the Bundestag received considerably more large donations in 2023 than in the previous year. At around 2.92 million euros, they more than doubled their result compared to 2022, as the figures published by the German Bundestag show.
The largest single donation in 2023 was made by the CSU, which received 569,962 euros from the Bavarian Metal and Electrical Industry Association after Christmas. It was followed by the CDU with a donation of 500,000 euros. The AfD only received one donation, but at 265,050 euros it was the third largest single donation. The Left Party received nothing at all.
The Südschleswigsche Wählerverband (SSW), which has one MP in the Bundestag, is a special case. The party of the Danish minority in Schleswig-Holstein is supported by the Ministry of Culture in Copenhagen with quarterly payments. Last year, these amounted to just under 526,000 euros.
Political parties in Germany are mainly financed by membership fees, money from the state and donations. Individual donations over 50,000 euros must be reported to the President of the Bundestag immediately. She must publish the information promptly. Donations that exceed 10,000 euros per year must be recorded in the statement of accounts with the name and address of the donor and the total amount. It is forwarded to the President of the Bundestag.
As a result of an amendment to the Political Parties Act, the threshold for large donations will be lowered from 50,000 to 35,000 euros from next year. This is intended to ensure greater transparency in party funding. The organization Transparency International has long been calling for donations to political parties to be published immediately, even from as little as 2,000 euros.
CDU leads in donations
Donations were again distributed very differently among the parties. The CDU led the way with income of just over 1 million euros, followed by its sister party, the CSU, with just under 830,000 euros. The two Union parties thus received more large donations than all other parties combined. The FDP received just under 307,000 euros, the AfD around 265,000 euros, the SPD just over 255,000 euros and the Greens almost exactly 251,000 euros. Volt, which sees itself as a European party, was the only party not represented in the Bundestag to receive a donation. It received an individual donation of 250,000 euros.
In the 2021 federal election year, the CDU, CSU, SPD, FDP and Greens received a record sum of 12.5 million euros from associations, companies and individuals. By contrast, the situation was much worse in 2022: At around 1.36 million euros, there was a sharp drop in transfers to party coffers.
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- Transparency International has consistently advocated for immediate publication of donations to political parties, even those below 2,000 euros.
- The FDP, with a donation of approximately 307,000 euros, ranked below the CDU and CSU in terms of large donations in 2023.
- In addition to membership fees and state funding, the major parties in the German federal parliament also rely on donations, with individual donations over 50,000 euros requiring immediate reporting and transparency.
- The Alliance 90/The Greens received almost exactly 251,000 euros in large donations in 2023, coming in just below the SPD in terms of donations.
- Following the reduction of the threshold for large donations from 50,000 to 35,000 euros due to an amendment to the Political Parties Act, political parties in Germany will be expected to provide increased transparency in their funding sources.
Source: www.ntv.de
