Ireland Governor Proposes Banning Crypto Donations to Political Parties

• O’Brien pointed out that political disinformation is a severe threat to democracy worldwide.
• The country’s relationship with cryptocurrencies has a checkered past.

Russian cyber-interference in Ireland’s democracy will be countered by new regulations governing the integrity of political actors. As part of a legislative overhaul, foreign donations in crypto would be restricted, and parties will be compelled to reveal all property holdings.

Foreign meddling in Irish elections is the subject of a letter from Ireland’s Local Government Minister, Darragh O’Brien, to the country’s political leaders. Social media campaigns that propagate disinformation and new legislation limiting how and from whom political parties may obtain financing are among the measures.

Severe Threat to Democracy

Achieving global standards and best practices in accounting for all political parties is now a must. In addition, party leaders must sign a certification of conformity with new fundraising regulations. While the Russian invasion of Ukraine was an extreme scenario, O’Brien pointed out that political disinformation is a severe threat to democracy worldwide.

O’Brien entrusted Attorney General Paul Gallagher to assemble a task team of legal and political experts to “build a legal and digital bulwark against malign interference in our elections.” Russian embassy expansion plans in Dublin were thwarted in 2018 by emergency measures enacted by the Irish government. Commentators speculated that this was a location for intelligence-gathering gear.

It is another example of how a breakdown in overall security may negatively affect Irish society when it entered the Health Service Executive (HSE) in May 2021 and brought its computer systems to a halt. Russia’s St. Petersburg-based criminal group, the Wizard Spiders, was accused of carrying out the assault. In addition, the country’s relationship with cryptocurrencies has a checkered past. Last year, the country’s central bank chief expressed “great concern” over the cryptocurrencies’ popularity.