Reform UK Receives Record £72 million in Donations Amid Electoral Commission Review
Reform UK, the party led by Nigel Farage, announced that it has accepted two separate donations of £36 million each from cryptocurrency investors Christopher Harborne and Ben Delo, the founder of the crypto‑trading platform BitMEX. The combined £72 million in new funding exceeds the total amount spent by the Labour Party and the Conservative Party in the last general election.
The UK Electoral Commission is currently undertaking a comprehensive review of the political campaign‑spending framework. Chief Executive Vijay Rangarajan said the review will examine whether existing limits on party expenditure, the interaction between party and candidate spending, and reporting requirements remain fit for purpose. Under the present rules, a political party may spend no more than £34 million in the 12 months preceding a general election.
Proposed amendments to the Representation of the People Bill would introduce an annual cap of £100,000 on contributions from overseas donors. The amendments also contain retrospective provisions that would apply to certain transactions dating from 25 March 2026. If enacted, these measures could restrict the availability of the £72 million that Reform UK has just received.
Reform UK has indicated that it may consider legal action should the government’s attempt to retrospectively limit overseas political donations affect the contributions already made. The Electoral Commission was asked by the government over the summer to review political campaign‑spending limits and is expected to deliver its recommendations in July.
Britain’s next general election must be held by August 2029, and any changes to campaign‑spending limits could have significant implications for all parties preparing for that contest.