The recent squabble among Canadian Alliance leadership contenders over whether they should disclose the names of their financial backers highlights a remarkable loophole in how Canada regulates party fundraising activities. Every year, each political party discloses the names of its donors and the amounts they give.
Candidates do the same after each election.
This reporting is overseen by Elections Canada, an independent, arms-length agency. But leadership races is one of the most obvious. And without any legal requirements to disclose donations to leadership candidates, the Alliance has said it won't bother requiring candidates to reveal their contributors. Preston Manning said he would eventually reveal the names of his donors, but refuses to say how much each one gave. That Manning, and now Day, can claim the high ground, without telling the public how much money they get from their supporters, is a testament to how low the Alliance high ground really is.