The British people cannot be bought, but their views and votes can be heavily influenced by a flood of political party propaganda(宣传) – from expensive advertising and constant leaflet drops(投放传单) to personalised(个性化的) online messages targeted directly at voters.
英国人民无法被收买，但他们的观点和选票可能受到大量政党宣传的严重影响——从昂贵的广告、持续不断的传单投递，到直接针对选民的个性化在线信息。
When I fought the election of 2010, there was a massive imbalance(失衡) in spending. In 2007 we had inherited(继承) Labour party debts of £25m following the 2005 election – and with such tight finances(财政紧张) Labour was able to spend only £8m in 2010, in contrast to the Conservatives’ £17m. We lost out(吃亏、失利) in particular by being unable to invest in the new forms of online advertising coming on stream(投入使用).
当我参加2010年大选时，竞选开支存在严重失衡。2005年大选后，我们在2007年继承了工党2500万英镑的债务——由于财政如此紧张，工党在2010年只能支出800万英镑，而保守党则花了1700万英镑。我们尤其吃亏在无力投资于当时新兴的在线广告形式。
But the imbalances are likely to become even starker(更加鲜明、更加突出) in future as the recent donations to Reform show. A decade ago, only 1% of individuals and companies making political donations gave of the order of(大约、数量级为) £1m or more. By 2024, they accounted for(占（比例）) over a third, at 35%. These latest record-breaking(创纪录的) donations from crypto billionaires Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne(加密货币亿万富翁) are worth more than all donations to UK political parties in 2025 combined.
但未来这种失衡很可能变得更加触目惊心，最近改革党收到的捐款就是明证。十年前，只有1%的个人和公司政治捐款达到100万英镑左右或更多。到2024年，这一比例已超过三分之一，达到35%。加密货币亿万富翁本·德洛和克里斯托弗·哈伯恩最新创纪录的捐款，比2025年英国所有政党收到的捐款总和还要多。