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Farage served as Reform’s honorary president between March 2021 and June 2024. On 3 June 2024, he confirmed he was returning as party leader and standing in the general election. He became Clacton MP in July 2024.<\/p>\n
Under parliamentary rules, new MPs must declare financial interests and “registrable benefits” received in the 12 months before their election.<\/p>\n
The guidelines say purely personal gifts or benefits do not need to be registered.<\/p>\n
When he became an MP, Farage registered a \u00a39,253 trip to Belgium in April 2024 donated by Cottrell, and later added a \u00a315,276 donation from Cottrell for a US domestic flight he provided in December 2024. <\/p>\n
No other support from Cottrell is listed in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests.<\/p>\n
A spokesman for Farage said: “It comes as no surprise that the Sunday Times has chosen to publish this baseless and contrived story, covering a period of time when Nigel Farage was not even an active politician let alone an elected one, given that the newspaper backed the Labour Party at the last general election. <\/p>\n
“Contrary to the story’s tone, no parliamentary rules have been broken.”<\/p>\n
A source said Reform paid for Farage’s security and staff after his return to politics.<\/p>\n
The source also denied Farage received accommodation from Cottrell – saying the MP did not stay at the London property.<\/p>\n
The Parliamentary Standards Commissioner, Daniel Greenberg, is currently investigating whether Farage broke the rules over the \u00a35m gift from British cryptocurrency investor Christopher Harborne in early 2024.<\/p>\n
Farage has said Harborne gave him the money to pay for his personal security, adding the gift was “purely private” and “wasn’t political in any sense at all”.<\/p>\n
Lib Dem MP Josh Babarinde has asked Greenberg to “get to the bottom” of the latest allegations linked to Farage’s support from Cottrell.<\/p>\n
Babarinde has also asked Greenberg to confirm whether he will investigate the claims as part of the existing inquiry or as a separate matter.<\/p>\n
A Labour Party spokesperson said: “Nigel Farage and Reform are engulfed in a huge and growing scandal.<\/p>\n
“These new allegations of secret payments from a wealthy convicted criminal are on top of the ongoing scandal of his secret \u00a35m gift from a crypto billionaire.<\/p>\n
“How much money has he been given, what did his donors get in return, and why has he tried to cover them up and avoid legitimate questions?”<\/p>\n
Responding to Jenrick’s interview, Labour said Reform “can’t shrug this scandal off and hope it goes away”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n