Farage Received £5m from Donor Before Becoming MP
Nigel Farage received £5 million from Reform UK mega donor Christopher Harborne prior to becoming a Member of Parliament, it has been revealed.
In an interview with The Telegraph, the Reform UK leader stated that the money was provided to cover personal protection costs, ensuring that he would be "safe and secure for the rest of my life." He also disclosed that his home was targeted in a firebomb attack last year.
Both Labour and the Conservative parties have accused Farage of breaching Commons rules by failing to declare the £5 million gift in the register of interests. The Conservatives have indicated they referred the Reform leader to the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner.
Christopher Harborne, a British cryptocurrency investor residing in Thailand, donated £9 million to Reform UK last year, marking the largest single donation to a UK political party by a living individual.
According to Reform sources speaking to the BBC, the separate £5 million gift to Farage was made in early 2024 and is not recorded on his MP register of interests.
Labour Party chair Anna Turley commented that Farage "appears to have broken the rules again by failing to declare this cash from his billionaire backer."
Conservative party chair Kevin Hollinrake stated that as a newly elected MP, Farage should have declared the gift, adding:
"Why does Reform think the rules don't apply to them? This stinks and Reform should come clean now."
Farage's team maintain that there was no obligation to declare the money as it was a personal gift.
A Reform UK spokesperson said:
"This was a personal unconditional gift that was given before he was elected. We are confident everything has been declared in accordance with the rules."
The Commons code of conduct requires new MPs to "register all their current financial interests, and any registrable benefits (other than earnings) received in the 12 months before their election within one month of their election."
Farage announced his candidacy for the Clacton seat on 4 June 2024 and that he was assuming leadership of Reform UK.
Farage Discusses Security Concerns and Firebomb Attack
In his interview with The Telegraph, Farage explained that Harborne became concerned about his security after an incident in 2019 when a milkshake was thrown at him while campaigning in Newcastle for the Brexit Party.
"I have tried and failed in the past to get security funded by the Home Office and I don't think the state will ever help me,"
Farage told the newspaper.
"I'm very much on my own and will be for the rest of my life, and I have to face up to that grim reality. Christopher is an ardent supporter who is deeply concerned for my safety."
Regarding the attack on his home in early 2025, Farage told The Telegraph that a lit device was pushed through his letterbox in what he described as an "outright arson attempt" while he was absent.
He discovered the damage upon returning home and noted that "luckily it had burned itself out in the porch."
Police investigated the incident but have not identified any suspects.
Farage said he was speaking about the attack for the first time because he had been concerned that earlier disclosure might require him to increase his safety measures further.
In a BBC Radio Wiltshire interview, he expressed concern about the impact of such attacks on public life:
"My worry about it is if that if continue down this path you'll finish up with good people who should go into public life just not doing it and that's a real concern."
