Crypto investor donates record £9m to Reform UK
Reform UK has received a record £9 million donation from cryptocurrency investor and aviation entrepreneur Christopher Harborne, according to new figures from the Electoral Commission.
This is the largest donation ever made by a living person to a British political party.
Mr Harborne, who is British but lives in Thailand, previously gave large sums to the Conservatives led by Boris Johnson and the Brexit Party, the predecessor of Reform, in 2019 and 2020.
While the next general election is not expected to be held until 2029, the donation will be made before the local elections next May.
Reform UK has been consistently ahead in national opinion polls since the spring.
Mr Harborne’s donation broke the previous record for a living person, set by £8 million from supermarket tycoon Lord David Sainsbury to the Liberal Democrats in 2019.
His cousin, Lord John Sainsbury, left £10 million to the Conservatives in his will in 2022.
Two of Mr Harborne’s businesses – AML Global and Sherriff Group – are linked to private aircraft and aviation.
Reform leader Nigel Farage has become a supporter of cryptocurrency, announcing in May that his party would become the first party in the UK to accept donations in Bitcoin.
According to the latest figures of the Election CommissionReform UK received donations totaling more than £10.2 million between July and September.
This was more than the Conservatives, who received donations of £4.6 million, followed by Labor with £2.1 million and the Liberal Democrats with £1 million.
Alongside Mr Harborne’s donation, the next biggest donation in the quarter was £1 million given to the Conservatives by games programmer and tech entrepreneur Jeremy Elliott San.
Labour’s biggest donor was the Unite union with £362,625, while the Liberal Democrats received the largest sum – £50,000 – from Neale Powell-Cook, who owns a food supply company.
It was the first quarter since last year’s general election in which Reform received more donations from the Conservatives.
But overall the Conservatives still received more donations since July 2024; Around £14.4m compared to £13.5m for reform.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the Conservative Party had “outperformed” other parties this year, while Mr Harborne’s donation to Reform was a “one-off” donation.
“I’m really pleased with today’s announcement that if you look at the breadth and depth of our donors and the trend, we’re performing at our best since I’ve been leader,” he told broadcasters.
Liberal Democrat spokeswoman Lisa Smart said the latest figures showed “some eye-watering donations”.
“Our elections are not on a level playing field if they can be bought by a small handful of people,” he added.
Political parties are required to report all donations over £11,180 to the Electoral Commission.
Opposition parties also benefit from public funds allocated based on their performance in the previous election to support their parliamentary mandate.
Between July and September Reformation received £227,835 in public funds; This is much less than the £2.3 million the Conservatives received and the £1 million the Liberal Democrats received.
