E. Rules on the financing of political parties

5. Spending limits and use of resources

According to common rules against corruption in the funding of political parties and electoral campaigns, states may consider adopting reasonable measures to prevent excessive funding of political parties, such as establishing limits on expenditure on electoral campaigns[1]. Under current Maltese law, the total campaign expenditure per candidate must not exceed EUR 1,400; this limit has been criticized as unreasonably low and insufficient to conduct an effective campaign encompassing all campaign-related expenditures.[2] Consideration could be given to adjusting campaign expenditure limits for individual candidates to a more realistic and appropriate level; such a legal limit could further be based on a form of indexation rather than an absolute amount in order to take account of inflation.

[1] Council of Europe Committee of Ministers Recommendation (2003)4, , Article 9; cf. Guidelines, par 196, and Human Rights Committee General Comment 25, par 19.

[2]OSCE/ODIHR Election Assessment Mission, p. 11.