UK's Nigel Farage acknowledges donations may fall foul of law change

Nigel Farage has acknowledged Reform UK may fall foul of UK government moves to clamp down on foreign donors, after his party received £72 million from two crypto billionaires over the weekend.

However, the Reform UK leader hit out against the move to retrospectively apply a new law to the twin £36 million gifts from Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne, which were announced on Saturday.

Reform has insisted the donations are in line both with current rules and planned restrictions on money from donors based overseas, which are set to be considered in the Lords on Monday.

Those changes restrict donations from expats to £100,000 which would also apply for the first 12 months after they return to the UK – changes which would be backdated to March 25 this year.

Delo has been based in Hong Kong but said in April he would return to the UK to avoid restrictions on overseas donors. Harborne was based in Thailand, but in June he was reported to have registered to vote in Hampshire.

Farage told the BBC on Monday he believed the two donations were "compliant" with the law as it stands, but suggested they would not be acceptable as a result of a law change in the Representation of the People Bill, due to be debated by peers.

"Both these donations are 100% compliant with the law today, of that there is no question whatsoever," the Reform UK leader told the BBC.

He was then asked whether Delo and Harborne were UK residents as of March 25, as this would have an impact on their donations.

Farage replied: "I'm not going to go into their particular details. All I'm going to say is, with the law of the land as it stands, they are both compliant.

"Now, there is talk, and Angela Rayner was talking about this yesterday, there is talk of them retrospectively declaring donations illegally.

"Well, that simply cannot be."

By David Lynch, David Hughes and Christopher McKeon, Press Association

source: PA

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