Should UK taxpayers fund the political arena?

John Prescott has opened something of a controversial debate with his comments regarding the precarious financial situation in which the Labour Party finds itself. The party is in debt to the tune of £20 million and there are now growing calls for UK taxpayers to fund political parties in the future thereby casting aside the need for wealthy donations from individuals, associations and companies. So should UK taxpayers fund the political arena?

In many ways UK taxpayers already fund the UK political sector through various expenses, the cost of running the government and other political endeavors. However, when it comes to party political campaigning prior to an election, historically all parties have tried to attract wealthy individuals and associations to support them. This has led to the likes of the Labour Party and the Conservative Party attracting the lion's share of donations and ultimately fighting it out amongst themselves for control of the UK government (at least prior to the current coalition set up).

Whether now is the time for UK taxpayers to inject limited capital into this specific area of politics is open to debate. On one hand it would allow all parties to operate on a level playing field but on the other hand it would be yet another expense for UK taxpayers to take on.