Summary
- The Labour Party in the UK has reached out to Nigel Farage, demanding he cease "evading reasonable scrutiny" regarding the £5 million personal donation he received from crypto mogul Christopher Harborne.
- Labour Chair Anna Turley claimed that Farage is "running from scrutiny," suggesting that his inconsistent explanations raise doubts about whether he violated parliamentary regulations and was truthful.
- The correspondence follows a challenge from Prime Minister Starmer during PMQs, where he questioned why Farage initially kept the donation "secret."
The Labour Party in the UK has formally addressed Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, accusing him of "evading reasonable scrutiny" concerning the $6.7 million (£5 million) undisclosed gift from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne, which he received shortly before reversing his decision not to run in the 2024 general election.
Labour chair Anna Turley remarked, as reported by The Guardian, that "it's time he ended his deafening silence and came clean with the public about what's transpired here." She added that he cannot continue to evade inquiries and alter his narrative.
Harborne, who possesses a 12% stake in stablecoin issuer Tether and ranks as the sixth-richest individual in the UK with a net worth of $24.4 billion, granted Farage the £5 million in 2024.
Following the donation, Farage successfully secured the Clacton seat in Essex in July and has since led Reform UK to emerge as the most financially supported party in Britain, receiving £7 million in donations from Harborne and BitMEX co-founder Ben Delo during the first quarter of 2026.
Last month, the parliamentary standards commissioner initiated a formal investigation into the substantial gift following a referral from the Conservatives, probing whether any part of the funds was used for political purposes.
The scrutiny intensified at Westminster on Wednesday when Prime Minister Keir Starmer confronted Farage during PMQs, emphasizing that the "£5 million question remains" and questioning why the Reform leader is avoiding inquiries about his donation and its initial concealment.
Starmer's remarks were in response to a query from Liberal Democrat MP Roz Savage, who pressed him on whether the government would consider implementing a cap on political contributions.
Farage has provided two distinct explanations regarding the donation.
Initially, he told The Telegraph that it was intended to cover his personal security for life, referencing past threats including an incident where his home was firebombed.
He later characterized it as a "reward" from Harborne for his Brexit advocacy and has consistently claimed he was under no obligation to disclose the gift.
In her letter, Turley asserted that "the British populace, along with the pertinent authorities and regulators, deserve a clear and honest account of the events," adding that his refusal to respond to media inquiries is "unacceptable."
Harborne's Contributions to Reform UK
Harborne's total donations to Reform UK amount to $16 million (£12 million), including a $12 million (£9 million) contribution last year, which marks the largest single political donation from a living individual in British history. His donations represent about two-thirds of Reform's funding for 2025.
In the first quarter of 2026, Harborne was joined by Ben Delo, co-founder of the crypto exchange BitMEX, who made a donation of $5.3 million (£4 million) to Reform through two separate payments in January and March.
While Starmer did not commit to a cap on large donations, he stated that the government "will take necessary measures to safeguard our democracy from foreign influence and illicit funds," referencing the moratorium on crypto donations and the newly established limit on contributions from overseas donors, a regulation Harborne believes was implemented due to him—adding that he has not ruled out returning to the UK to circumvent it.
Decrypt has reached out to both Farage's office and Christopher Harborne for their responses.