Labour Party reduces debts by £6m

The Tories recorded a £1.57m surplus, down from £4.2m

Labour cut its debt by more than £6m to £18.9m last year, figures from the Electoral Commission reveal.

The Conservative Party reduced the amount it owed from £9m to £7.75m, while the Lib Dems ended the year £1.3m in the black.

Meanwhile, Sinn Fein was fined £500 for submitting its accounts after the 7 July deadline.

The commission said it was looking at reforming the way parties present accounts to make them more consistent.

Running costs

Labour made a £7.51m operating surplus last year - compared with an £814,000 deficit in 2006 - accounts released by the Electoral Commission reveal.

Treasurer Jack Dromey said the party had shown "a new discipline of approach" and a determination to "live within its means".

The Conservatives recorded a £1.57m surplus, down from £4.2m.

And the Lib Dems recorded an operating deficit of £366,677 - compared with a surplus of £1.18m in 2006.

The accounts put out by the commission also reveal that the Scottish National Party made a £240,590 deficit in 2007, compared with a £452,251 surplus in 2006.

In the same period Plaid Cymru went from a £392,518 surplus to a £276,341 deficit.

'Key source'

As well as Sinn Fein's fine, the British National Party's regional accounting unit has been issued with a £100 penalty notice for late filing of accounts.

The Welsh Liberal Democrats' accounting unit has yet to give its details and the resulting fine will "depend on how late they are", the commission says.

"The accounts of a party are a key source of information for anyone wishing to find out more about a political party's finances," said chief executive Peter Wardle.

"Easy comparison between different parties' statements of accounts is not currently possible because parties and accounting units use different formats and naming conventions.

"The commission is consulting on prescribing regulations that will set out how accounts must be presented with more consistency and transparency."