Electoral Resilience

Thank you very much, Mr Speaker, for granting the statement. When we each enter this Chamber, we carry on one shoulder the duty to represent our constituents and, on the other, the responsibility to protect this democracy. The case of the former MEP Nathan Gill has revealed the threat that our democracy faces today, and I know it has caused deep concern right across the House. On Friday 21 November 2025, Mr Gill was sentenced to 10 and a half years in prison for accepting bribes linked to the Russian state and attempting to advance that state’s twisted interests. It is the longest sentence handed down to a politician in such a case in our nation’s recent history.

While we must commend the work of the police and the Crown Prosecution Service, who successfully prosecuted this case, it is right that we now take a step back and look at how we can protect our democracy against such appalling crimes. Let me be clear about what the crime was. An elected politician took bribes to parrot the lies of a hostile state responsible for the death of Dawn Sturgess, a British citizen, on British soil. He took the side of those responsible for invading a sovereign European state, and he was prosecuted while Putin’s military targeted the civilian men, women and children of Ukraine. At the time, he was a Member of the European Parliament, supposedly representing the British people, and he went on to become a senior leader of a UK political party. We must learn the lessons, so that this can never happen again.

Following discussions with ministerial colleagues, I have today ordered an independent review into foreign financial interference in UK politics. It will be led by the former permanent secretary, Philip Rycroft, who will report both to me as Secretary of State responsible for elections and to the Minister for Security, as the chair of the defending democracy taskforce. The facts are clear: a British politician took bribes to further the interests of the Russian regime—a regime that forcefully deported vulnerable Ukrainian children and killed a British citizen on British soil using a deadly nerve agent. This conduct is a stain on our democracy. The independent review will work to remove that stain.

The purpose of the review is to provide an in-depth assessment of the current financial rules and safeguards, and to make recommendations. I will deposit a full copy of the terms of reference in the House of Commons Library. I have asked Philip Rycroft to report back by the end of March, when I will return to this House to set out his findings and the Government’s response. It is right that the review be independent of Government and independent of any political party. It is also important that I make it clear to the House that investigating crimes and examining broader allegations of wrongdoing remain the responsibility of the Electoral Commission and the police, not of this review. Individual Members should continue to refer to the National Protective Security Authority guidance, and to speak to the parliamentary security authorities if they have any specific concerns. The findings of the independent review will build on the Government’s election strategy and on the counter political interference and espionage action plan, and will inform the elections and democracy Bill that we will bring forward next year.

We published our strategy for modern and secure elections earlier this year. It will close loopholes that should have been closed long before we entered office. It will strengthen rules on donations, so that only legitimate donors can support legitimate campaigns. It will also clamp down on the free rein that shell companies and unincorporated associations have to make donations without first undergoing proper checks. However, since the strategy was published, events have shown that we need to consider whether our firewall is enough. The independent review will look at that, focusing on: the effectiveness of our broader political finance laws; the checks and balances in political regulations on identifying and mitigating foreign interference; safeguards against illicit funding streams, including cryptocurrencies; the rules governing the constitution and regulation of parties; and the Electoral Commission’s enforcement power. It is right that the review looks at these critical issues in depth, and I stand ready to do whatever is necessary to protect British democracy from foreign and hostile interference.

I mentioned the weight of responsibility that each of in this House should feel. Those who seek to disrupt or attack the foundations of our democracy will never prevail. Britain will always be a democracy, because the people of this country will never have it any other way, and because the choices of the British people will always be the guiding star for our nation. I thank all hon. Members who have come to the Chamber today. I am highlighting the threat of foreign interference because the first responsibility of His Majesty’s Government is to keep our people safe. Our ability to protect this nation and its values is always stronger when this Parliament presents a united front, so I hope that Members from right across the Chamber will offer their support for the independent review. I commend this statement to the House.

I call the shadow Minister, Paul Holmes.

I thank the Secretary of State for giving me advance sight of his statement. Let me begin by saying that protecting the integrity of our democratic system from foreign interference is not a partisan issue. It goes to the heart of public trust in our elections. Interference in our elections by foreign actors is something that we must all be vigilant against. I concur fully with what he said about Nathan Gill, and join the Secretary of State in giving sincere thanks to the CPS and the police. Any such crime deserves full condemnation from all Members of this House.

The Government announced their election strategy back in July, a strategy that affects all of us in this House. However, there was no consultation of political parties before the strategy was released. There has also been no formal consultation since it was announced. December marks the first time that the Government have engaged with the parliamentary parties panel. We do, however, welcome the announced independent review led by Philip Rycroft, and we wish him well in his work. Will the Minister commit to all parties being consulted during the new independent review’s work? Does he also accept the long-standing convention that Governments should not unilaterally impose changes to the law affecting political parties without proper consultation and cross-party engagement?

On electoral resilience, last week the Speaker’s Committee on the Electoral Commission noted that the commission was not consulted at all on the cancellation of the 2026 mayoral elections. Will the Secretary of State update us on whether council elections are going ahead, or will he cancel more elections at the last minute? Will he give electoral officials plenty of notice, whatever he chooses to do?

Delving into the Government’s statement, I note that the Government have signalled their intention to introduce “know your customer”-style checks on political donations, but political parties are not banks or the taxman. During the passage of the National Security Bill, the last Government committed to looking at greater powers for information sharing between relevant agencies and with political parties, precisely to identify irregular funding sources. Does the Secretary of State agree that such information sharing would help political parties to meet these new duties? I welcome the Secretary of State’s announcement on cryptocurrencies, and the clarity that they will be in scope of the independent review.

I warmly welcome the hon. Member’s support for the review. I agree with him that this is way above party politics; this matters to all of us. It is about the integrity and safety of our democracy, and about ensuring that the safeguards in place to protect those precious things are sufficiently robust.

On the election strategy and the Bill that will be brought forward in the new year, we will of course engage with parties on aspects of that Bill before it is brought to the House. The hon. Member asked about the elections that are scheduled to go ahead; they will go ahead. He asked about cryptocurrency. That will be in the scope of the review, and I expect the independent reviewer to take a view on the subject. It has been raised by Members in all parts of the House, but I am sure that the hon. Member and other Members of his party will want to make their views clear to the reviewer before he comes to his conclusions. Again, the review is fully independent, but I would expect China to be fully in scope because of the questions that have been raised about the threats that China poses to national security, which are well documented.

We will engage with the devolved Administrations on applying the independent review’s findings on matters relating to elections that are within their competency.

I call the Chair of the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee.

I thank the Secretary of State for making his statement. Far too often, Members right across this House take elections for granted. The fact that we can go to the ballot box and cast our votes in a free and fair election is something that we have to fight for and protect, so I welcome the fact that the investigation will look into this, and particularly the foreign donations angle. It cannot be right that while political parties can raise millions of pounds in cryptocurrency, the source of that funding is unchecked, so I welcome the review into illicit funding, which will ensure that we can trace the source of political donations.

I also welcome the appointment of Philip Rycroft, and I hope to go through the terms of reference, which, as the Secretary of State outlined, will be published later. In welcoming this announcement, it is important that we look at the fact that democracy is under attack. We need to ensure that accountability and independence stay in check. The strategy and policy statement introduced by the previous Conservative Government were a step in the wrong direction; they gave politicians undue influence over the Electoral Commission. Will the Secretary of State confirm that the strategy and policy statement will be abolished in the upcoming elections Bill, and whether the independence of the Electoral Commission will be protected in future?

I thank the Chair of the Select Committee for her support for the review, and I look forward to the Committee making its views clear to Philip Rycroft and his team. I agree with her about the problematic nature of cryptocurrency, and with her concerns about the anonymity of donors. It is important that there be transparency about where that money comes, and that we see who is seeking to influence British politics and democracy, particularly if they are malign, hostile foreign or state actors. She asked a question about the elections Bill. That will be published in the new year, and the details will be clear to her then.

I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson.

First, I thank the Secretary of State for advance notice of the content of his statement. The Liberal Democrats welcome the statement and the decision to establish an independent review. This is a serious issue that clearly demands action, and we will follow the review closely.

Public trust in politics is dangerously low. Polling consistently shows only 9% to 12% of the public trust politicians, which should seriously worry every Member of this House. Restoring trust must begin with integrity and transparency. People need confidence that the information shaping our political debate is accurate. Trust also relies on fairness. Every vote must count equally, and that requires a fair and credible electoral system. Finally, and most relevant to today, trust depends on transparency about political finance. Voters should know who funds our politics, and should trust that wealthy individuals, corporations or foreign interests cannot buy influence or access.

With that in mind, will the Government accept that a small number of extremely wealthy individuals now wield disproportionate influence over British politics? That includes overseas donors, which raises serious questions about foreign interference. In a recent Westminster Hall debate, Members from across the House spoke out about this strongly. Finally, will the Secretary of State commit to donation caps, which are supported by voters across every major party?

I welcome the hon. Lady’s support for the review. We have now had that support from all sides of the House, and that is appreciated. It is very important that the House of Commons stands united against the potential threats to our democracy from hostile foreign state actors. Our democracy is one of the most precious things we have, and it is important that we all work together across the Chamber to protect it. We are not targeting any particular states or individuals with this review; we are looking to confirm that the safeguards that protect our democracy from inappropriate or malign foreign financial interference are robust enough. I look forward to Philip Rycroft’s findings when we have them towards the end of March.

My right hon. Friend will be aware that the hon. Member for Boston and Skegness (Richard Tice) recently failed to declare on time hospitality in a French villa from the wife of the former Russian deputy Finance Minister. Will my right hon. Friend assure me that the offer and acceptance of gifts and free holidays from Russian oligarchs will be in the scope of the review?

I preface my response by saying that the review is not looking at individual cases, but the broader issue of gifts and hospitality and how they may be used by malign, or potentially malign, foreign agents or state actors will be in scope for the independent review.

I hope that the Rycroft review will take account of the fact that the giving of money is by no means the worst aspect, or the main aspect, of treacherous behaviour, because very often these people do what they do out of a genuine belief in a potential enemy’s point of view. It would be interesting to know whether the crime would have attracted such a large sentence as it did if, instead of just money being given, it had been a matter of clandestine contact because the person was willing to spout the Russian line anyway. Let us not be overconcerned with the giving of the bribe, which is often a bonus to people who want to betray us to a potential enemy in any case.

The right hon. Member makes a very important point. The Security Minister, who is sitting alongside me, leads the defending democracy taskforce, which will be taking a wider view of the threats to our democracy as they evolve, and so too must our safeguards evolve to keep our democracy safe. Philip Rycroft’s review will focus on malign foreign financial interference, given that we know from the Nathan Gill case that there may be weaknesses and vulnerabilities, and we want to ensure that our safeguards are as robust as they can be.

Order. Before I call the next Member, I remind Members that if they are going to seek to make a complaint about the non-declaration of interests or the breaking of rules of conduct by another Member, that would be an issue better raised with the Standards Commissioner than with the Secretary of State today. Equally, if they are going to refer to another Member, they should have informed them in advance.