Why has Nigel Farage taken £5m from a crypto billionaire?
5/1/202640 min
In the last weeks, the funding of the Reform party has attracted more and more attention. This is a party which tells us they are heading to Downing street, a party tipped to the top the poll in next week’s English local elections.
We now know that Nigel Farage’s party has been given over £12m from a single donor, a Thai based British businessman, crypto billionaire, Christopher Harborne. And we also now know that just before Nigel Farage was elected an MP in 2024, Mr Harborne gave Farage a gift of £5m, never before declared.
How could it be that Reform, a party we are told which is preparing to be government, is so dependent on a Thai based crypto billionaire? What does it say about the way we fund politics? And politics to come?
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First 90 secondsNigel Farage· Soundbite0:00
[digital music] This is a Global Player original podcast.
Lewis Goodall· Host0:05
Reform has depended on one man. What is unusual is the extraordinary size of Harbourne's donations to Reform in such a short space of time. Harbourne gave the single biggest donation in British political history to Reform. Where is Reform getting its money?
Nigel Farage· Soundbite0:27
[laughing] [cheering] [applause] Do you like them? [laughing] Very expensive.
Christopher Harborne· Soundbite0:41
[laughing] It's not expensive.
Nigel Farage· Soundbite0:45
But guess what? I bought them myself. How about that?
Lewis Goodall· Host0:47
[cheering] [applauding] You may remember not so long ago that British politics was convulsed by so-called Freebigate. Keir Starmer and Labour ministers being lacerated for accepting corporate hospitality, clothes, gifts from party donors. It was an early part of Keir Starmer's problems. But by comparison to party funding, you can really argue that all of that was small, almost non-existent beer. And in the last weeks, the funding of one party in particular has attracted more and more attention. A party which tells us they're heading for Downing Street, a party tipped to top the poll in next week's English