Ministers seek law change to make £72m donations to Reform illegal

Nigel Farage acknowledged on Monday that Reform could fall foul of government moves to clamp down on foreign donors. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian View image in fullscreen Nigel Farage acknowledged on Monday that Reform could fall foul of government moves to clamp down on foreign donors. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian Ministers seek law change to make £72m donations to Reform illegal Plans to strengthen legislation already going through parliament might mean donors having to meet stricter UK residence requirements Andy Burnham’s government could thwart Reform’s unprecedented £72m donations with retrospective restrictions on political donors that will include tough new residency requirements, ministers have announced. In a move that is likely to set off furious complaints from Nigel Farage’s party, the government will table amendments to legislation going through the House of Lords within weeks that puts the legality of Reform’s latest donations in doubt. Senior Labour and union figures had urged ministers to look again at party funding rules after Reform announced at the weekend that two cryptocurrency billionaires, Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne, who have both previously been based overseas, were each donating £36m to the party. Government sources, however, said the plans to strengthen the representation of the people bill had been under way for weeks, after MPs pushed for further action on domestic donations in the House of Commons. Under the proposals, which are expected to be tabled at the Lords committee stage of the legislation, individual donors will have to prove their ongoing physical presence in the UK, in line with the residence requirements applied to other areas of government policy, such as tax status. graphicThe extraordinary measure will be seen as a sign of the stakes attached to the donations, which would give Reform a vast advantage in organising supporters on the ground before the next election. However, Farage acknowledged on Monday that Reform could fall foul of government moves to clamp down on foreign donors, although the party has said the £72m donations are in line with both current rules and those already voted on . The legislation currently restricts donations from expats to £100,000, which would also apply for the first 12 months after they return to the UK – backdated to 25 March this year. Ministers have already brought in a minimum residency requirement of the remainder of the calendar year in which they return, plus a further full year, meaning Reform may not be able to accept the £72m donations until January 2028.