Sinn Fein earned more than DUP and UUP combined in 2017

The republican party’s income – in excess of £1 million – was by far the highest of any political party in Northern Ireland last year.

The Electoral Commission published the financial accounts of 24 political parties in Northern Ireland for 2017.

Sinn Fein’s accounts showed a total income in 2017 of £1,008,752.

Of that, the accounts showed donations of £437,358, grants totalling £288,816, and fundraising efforts worth £77,785. The remaining total was made up from what the accounts listed as ‘sundry income’, ‘ministerial drivers’, and ‘head office contribution’.

The DUP was the next highest earning party in Northern Ireland, bringing £510,362 into the party’s coffers last year.

The UUP earned £457,827, while Alliance collected £360,143 last year and the SDLP £236,977.

In terms of spending, Sinn Fein also paid out the largest sums by some distance with an expenditure of £1,138,615.

The UUP outspent their unionist rivals in the DUP last year. The DUP, despite bringing more cash into the party in 2017 than the UUP, spent only £461,122 compared to the Ulster Unionist’s spend of £551,997.

In terms of assets, the UUP’s portfolio is worth the most at £970,242, followed by the SDLP whose assets were listed as being worth £378,953. Sinn Fein’s amounted to £211,024 and the DUP’s assets are listed as being worth exactly £250,000.