Politics

Nigel Farage Cornered Over Reform’s Wealthy Crypto Donor

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Nigel Farage dodged questions about his wealthy overseas donor on Wednesday amid rising scrutiny over Reform UK’s finances.

It was recently revealed that Farage accepted a £5 million donation from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne back in 2024, at a time when he insisted he would not be running for parliament.

But within weeks, he U-turned and was successfully elected to be the MP for Clacton in July 2024.

Parliamentary rules state any benefits received 12 months before taking office should be declared, depending on whether it was for political or personal purposes.

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The official rules say: “If there is any doubt, the benefit should be registered.”

Reform has insisted that this donation went towards Farage’s personal protection and therefore did not need to be declared.

But, while finalising his campaign ahead of elections for local councils in England and devolved parliaments in Scotland and Wales, the MP for Clacton came up against Sky News’ Cathy Newman over the lump sum.

She said: “Mr Farage, is this what £5 million in security buys? These guys here?”

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“You’d be surprised,” the politician said mysteriously, as he walked off.

“Oh really? Is it expensive?” Newman asked.

“What do you think?” He hit back.

“How long is the £5 million going to last, Mr Farage?” She asked.

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“Hopefully until I’m dead,” he replied.

Following the politician as he tried to retreat to his car, Newman said: “Mr Farage, why won’t you declare the donation? You’re a public figure, you need the donation because you’re in politics.”

When there was no answer, the journalist said: “Mr Farage, Christopher Harborne gave you the party £9 million last year, £3 million this year, £5 million to you personally.

“He’s not even based in the UK. He’s interfering with democracy, isn’t he?”

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Farage ignored the questions and simply got into his car.

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