FARAGE DEFENDS £5M CRYPTO BILLIONAIRE GIFT AS PRIVATE MATTER

Nigel Farage has stated that a £5m donation from Christopher Harborne, a British Thai-based businessman involved in cryptocurrency, is a "purely private matter" and "not any of your business". Farage, leader of Reform UK, made the comments on BBC Radio 4's Today programme. He said he was not paid to promote cryptocurrency interests because he already supported changing the law on the subject. Farage added that even if London became a centre for crypto trading, it would represent a minute part of the global market and would not influence prices.

Farage previously described the donation as "a reward for campaigning for Brexit for 27 years". When asked whether he could return the money if found to have broken parliamentary rules, he declined to answer directly, stating the question was not his interviewer's business but that he would discuss the matter again if the standards commissioner decided otherwise. Farage also stated he was "not in politics" when the donation was made in 2024, though BBC interviewer Nick Robinson noted that Farage had been interviewed for 40 minutes on his podcast about a possible parliamentary run. Farage characterised that discussion as relating to "a very, very difficult decision" about which he was "far from making my mind up".

The donation is being investigated by standards authorities. Farage was also asked about recent criticism he had levelled at Prime Minister Keir Starmer for receiving donations of glasses and suits, and whether this constituted hypocrisy. Farage said it was not hypocritical because Starmer had been leader of the opposition whilst Farage was a presenter on GB News. On the tenth anniversary of the Brexit referendum, Farage stated he did not regret the vote and said he did not regret "independence" or "getting back the ability to make our own decisions on regulation, immigration, global trade partners".