Scottish Greens call for action to end “bankrolling” billionaires’ influence in politics

THE Scottish Greens have called for action to end the influence of “bankrolling” billionaires in politics.

Scottish Green co-leader Patrick Harvie says the super rich have had far too much sway over politics for far too long.

The 51-year-old has called for caps on donations to curb the influence of millionaires and billionaires in our politics.

Harvie’s comments come in the wake of a barrage of controversial posts on social media from the world’s richest man Elon Musk, who has spent the last week criticising the UK for its handling of alleged child sex abuse rings.

Musk, 53, labelled Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer “evil” and suggested the US should “liberate” the UK from its “tyrannical government”.

The Tesla CEO attacked Starmer and the British political establishment over claims that not enough had been done to investigate child “grooming gangs” in the UK, whilst also calling Labour minister Jess Phillips a “rape genocide apologist” who should be jailed.

The centibillionaire has also called for the release of anti-Islamic activist Tommy Robinson, currently serving an 18-month prison service for contempt of court, whilst simultaneously backing right wing party Reform UK, led by Nigel Farage.

Mr Harvie said: “The super wealthy aren’t bankrolling political parties to be nice, they are doing it to buy power and ultimately to push for the kind of policies that will benefit them.

“Billionaire influence is incompatible with democracy. We need to be the best democracy we can be, rather than the best democracy money can buy.

“That means an end to unlimited donations, and the redistribution of wealth to tackle the grotesque inequality that is so prevalent.

“The plutocrats, polluters and bankers have had their voices at the heart of policy making for far too long, and that’s left us with an economy based on exploitation, inequality and the rich hoarding wealth.

“We need radical change, and that means taking power and influence away from those who benefit from the status quo.

“The rise of the right wing tech billionaires should concern all of us. They have used their platforms to spread hate, division and misinformation, and to deliberately subvert democracy.

“Over recent days we have seen the richest man in the world spreading dangerous conspiracy theories and advocating for the overthrow of the UK’s democratically elected government.

“We can’t afford to let Elon Musk and other toxic influences drag us back to the dark ages.”

The party has called for stricter spending and donation limits, new transparency laws, a ban on donations from companies and individuals based outside of the UK, and new powers and resources for the Electoral Commission to effectively investigate and sanction infringements.