THE amount of donations the city's new MP has received since the start of parliament has been revealed.

Worcester's MP Tom Collins has been given donations worth £20,460 which he said was funded by the local Labour Party and larger donors. 

This is more than double the average - the average MP's donations are about £8,750.

Mr Collins received donations from the following sources:

- Split Second Research: £6,910 

- Unite the Union: £5,000

- Chris Goodrich: £2,700

- Unison: £2,840

- GMB Union: £3,000

Mr Collins said: "Like other Labour MPs, my campaign was funded by our local Labour Party - a group of local volunteers who care about our community and want to see life improving for everyone.

"Most of the party's fundraising came from local residents chipping in to help bring change.

"A proportion of the money raised came from a small number of larger donations - these were a mixture of in-kind and financial donations from a mixture of individuals, local businesses, and the local union branch or region donors.

"I'm really pleased that so many local people were willing to put their trust in Labour and back our campaign.

"It’s really important that local people do engage in our democracy, and work together in the mission to improve our shared future."

When we asked Mr Collins why he thought his donations were so much higher than average, he said: “We ran a positive campaign in Worcester, which was focussed on hope and positive change. 

“Some local people really got behind our efforts with both financial and in-kind support. I’m really pleased that our campaign won people’s trust and inspired them to get involved, and I’m looking forward to making real change in our city."

The MP with the most donations is Robert Jenrick who received £205,000 since the start of parliament.

MP's financial interests can come in the form of donations, earnings from other employment and gifts. 

The Labour Party has received £9.7 million during the parliament and Mr Collins is in the top 28 per cent of all MPs.

Under the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (PPERA) members of political parties and holders of certain elected offices, including MPs, must follow rules relating to donations and loans they receive in connection with their political activities.

The rules they must follow include checking that donations they receive with a value of more than £500 are from permissible sources.

They must also report the details of relevant donations and loans to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards within 28 days of accepting them.