First round of general election spending published

13 Feb 2025 01:14 PM

The Electoral Commission yesterday published (Opens in new window) the first set of data about spending at the 2024 UK parliamentary general election.

Smaller political parties and campaigners – those spending £250,000 or less – spent a total of £1,875,205 during the regulated period, which covered 6 July 2023 to 4 July 2024.

The total spend is made up of £733,575 spent by 92 parties (Opens in new window) and £1,141,630 spent by 18 registered non-party campaigners (Opens in new window).  

Information on money spent on campaigning during this time must be submitted to the Commission after the election. The Commission publishes this data so that voters and other campaigners can see how much was spent and ensure that spending limits have been observed. 

To provide a full picture of the money spent during the campaign, the Commission will publish data relating to larger parties and campaigners that spent over £250,000, and candidate spending in the coming months. The Commission is currently analysing all the data submitted to it, and will share key findings in the summer.

Jackie Killeen, Director of Electoral Administration and Regulation, said:

“Transparency is essential to our democratic process and a key part of building confidence in the UK’s political finance system. It’s important that voters can see how participants sought to influence their vote at an election, so we publish this information for everyone to see.

“This was the first general election where digital imprint requirements were in effect, along with new reporting and registration thresholds for non-party campaigners. Despite the new requirements, we saw high levels of compliance with the political finance laws among smaller parties and campaigners. However, if any potential offences are found, they will be considered in line with our enforcement policy.  

“Ahead of the election, we focused our support on helping parties and campaigners to understand and meet their responsibilities, and in all cases we were able to secure compliance without the need for formal enforcement.” 

The five highest-spending parties that reported spending £250,000 or less at the 2024 UK general election

Party  Expenditure
Plaid Cymru - The Party of Wales £156,531
Workers Party of Britian  £81,292
Sinn Féin £68,499
Alliance - Alliance Party of Northern Ireland £52,229
Women's Equality Party  £41,004

The five highest-spending non-party campaigners who reported spending £250,000 or less at the 2024 UK general election

Non-party campaigner  Expenditure
38 Degrees  £206,700
HOPE not hate  £158,624
Cruelty Free International  £108,945
WE OWN IT LTD £98,774
Greenpeace Limited  £95,851

Non-party campaigners must also report certain donations alongside their spending, which was also published yesterday. 

For more information contact the Electoral Commission press office on 020 7271 0704, out of office hours 07789 920 414 or press@electoralcommission.org.uk. 

Notes to editors

  • The Electoral Commission is the independent body which oversees elections and regulates political finance in the UK. We work to promote public confidence in the democratic process and ensure its integrity by:

    o  enabling the delivery of free and fair elections and referendums, focusing on the needs of electors and addressing the changing environment to ensure every vote remains secure and accessible

    o  regulating political finance – taking proactive steps to increase transparency, support compliance and pursue breaches

    o  using our expertise to make and advocate for changes to our democracy, aiming to improve fairness, transparency and efficiency

  • The Commission was set up in 2000 and reports to the UK, Welsh and Scottish Parliaments.
  • Non-party campaigners across the UK must register with the Commission if they intend to spend more than £10,000. They must submit a spending return if they spend more than £20,000 in England or £10,000 in Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland on regulated campaign activity during the regulated period. 
  • Every political party that contested the general election is required to submit a campaign expenditure return to the Commission, even if it was a nil return, as well as non-party campaigners who spent over the reporting thresholds. 
  • The Commission has a legal duty to publish spending returns as soon as practicably possible, ensuring voters have timely access to information about election spending. 
  • Ninety-two political parties submitted returns with spending of £250,000 or less. However, 39 of these were nil returns and will not appear in our PEF Online database.
  • The deadlines for delivering spending returns depend on how much a party or campaigner spent. Those that spent £250,000 or below had until 4 October 2024 to submit their returns. Those that spent over £250,000 had until 4 January 2025 to submit their audited returns. 
  • The Commission has worked to address any inaccuracies in the returns before publication. It encourages parties and campaigners to invest in their compliance processes and to seek our advice before submitting returns. 
  • If additional inaccuracies are identified after publication, the Commission will publish revised returns to ensure published spending information is as accurate as possible. Where appropriate, it will consider any inaccuracies or incomplete information in line with its enforcement policy.