Laura Kuenssberg Issues Crypto Backer Reality Check

Laura Kuenssberg delivered a brutal reality check to Robert Jenrick about one of Reform UK’s crypto billionaire backers.

Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne gave the party £36 million each in the last 48 hours.

Reform leader Nigel Farage said he was “honoured and humbled” to receive the huge sums of cash.

But critics pointed out that Delo has only recently returned to live in the UK from Hong Kong, while Harborne is still based in Thailand, even though he is registered to vote in Britain.

Jenrick, who is Reform’s shadow Treasury spokesman, was quizzed about the party’s decision to accept the donations on BBC1’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg programme.

The presenter asked him: “Is it healthy for any political party to have such a huge proportion of its funding, such an injection of cash, from two men from the same industry?”

Jenrick replied: “Firstly, Christopher Harborne has many different business interests as I understand them, it’s not just simply this one.

“These are two people who are patriotic Brits, they love this country, they are worried that it’s in a mess and slipping away.”

But Kuenssberg told him: “One of them lives in Thailand.”

Ignoring her comment, Jenrick went on: “They’ve obviously lost faith in the Conservative Party and the Labour Party, they see Reform and Nigel in particular as this country’s last, best hope.”

On the same programme, shadow housing secretary Angela Rayner suggested Reform may have to give some of the money back under a draft law currently going through parliament which would cap donations from people living overseas.

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