Reform UK could face an investigation from the elections watchdog over the £72m in donations the party has received from two crypto billionaires.
Labour MP Phil Brickell has asked the Electoral Commission to clarify whether the two £36m donations from Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne are permissible, HuffPost UK reports.
The two crypto billionaires separately donated £36m each within the space of 24 hours over the weekend.
However, there are questions over whether the donations comply with electoral law that is set to be introduced by the government.
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Harborne and Delo have both previously been based overseas. Harborne has been based in Thailand but is registered to vote in the UK, whilst Delo said earlier this year he was moving back to Britain from Hong Kong.
Earlier this year, the government announced a £100,000 cap on donations from overseas electors as part of its Representation of the People Bill. The government made clear the legislation would apply retrospectively from the date it was announced, 25 March.
Then, in July this year, the government announced an amendment to the bill which would mean individuals returning to the UK from overseas will be subject to the donation cap for at least a full calendar year from their return to the UK.
Speaking to the BBC on Monday, Nigel Farage did not say whether Harborne and Delo had been living in the UK as of 25 March.
So, Bolton West MP Phil Brickell has asked the Electoral Commission to check whether the eye-watering donations are permissible.
Brickell, who is chair of the all-party parliamentary group on anti-corruption, said: “The British public deserve complete confidence that all political donations are lawful, transparent and come with no strings attached.”
According to HuffPost UK, Brickell said in a letter to Electoral Commission chief executive Dr Vijay Rangarajan that “it appears very likely that both donors were still registered overseas on – and for some time after – March 25, 2026”.
He continued: “I would therefore be very grateful for swift clarification from the Electoral Commission on whether you see grounds for opening an investigation into the permissibility of the two £36m donations.”
Ministers are said to be looking at making further amendments to the Representation of the People Bill has it goes through the House of Lords.
Under the proposals, 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, the Guardian reports.
Farage has seemingly conceded that both billionaires could be thwarted by the legislation restrictions, which the government would implement retrospectively.
Speaking to the BBC’s Chris Mason, Farage said the donations were compliant with the law “today.”
When he was asked whether the donations would fall foul of any upcoming law changes, Farage said: “Retrospectively declaring donations illegal – that simply cannot be.”
“You cannot confiscate money that has been given legally within the law as it stands,” he added.
Reform’s deputy leader Richard Tice has also been unable to specifically say when Harborne and Delo had returned to the UK.
Farge has reacted with predictable anger to reports of retrospective law changes., saying Reform would advocate restricting the capacity of trades unions to give money to the Labour Party if the government pursued the idea.