Farage suggests standards investigation will find against him

Summarised from 3 outlets · Updated 8 Nov, 11:53 · Archive

Nigel Farage has suggested he believes Parliament's standards commissioner will find against him over an undeclared £5 million gift from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne.

Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader and Clacton MP, has suggested he expects Parliament's standards commissioner to rule against him over an undeclared £5 million gift from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne, which he received before the 2024 general election. Farage was interviewed by Commissioner Daniel Greenberg for around 30 minutes in September as part of the investigation.

Under Commons rules, new MPs must register gifts worth more than £300 received in the previous 12 months, unless they could not reasonably be thought to relate to their political activities. When asked on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg whether he expected the commissioner to find against him, Farage replied: 'Do I think the establishment would find against me, the leader of an insurgent party? What a question to ask.' The Mirror notes that Farage offered no evidence for this suggestion about the commissioner's impartiality.

Farage criticised Parliament's rules as a 'farce', saying that because he could not speak freely about the confidential probe, 'people can write what they like, I'm not allowed to respond.' The Standards Committee comprises four Labour MPs, two Conservative MPs, one Liberal Democrat MP and seven members of the public, which Parliament says brings an 'independent and external perspective' to its work. The probe is expected to conclude shortly.

How it is being reported

• Farage suggests he expects damning verdict on £5m ‘gift’ from parliament’s sleaze watchdogReform UK leader could face Commons suspension if found to have broken parliamentary rules over donationThe Independent · 8 Nov, 13:37
• Nigel Farage suggests £5million probe will find against him and whines about 'farce'Nigel Farage has suggested he believes Parliament’s standards watchdog will find he has breached the rules in an investigation into a £5million gift he receivedThe Mirror · 8 Nov, 11:27
• Farage suggests he believes investigation into £5m gift will find against himThe Reform UK leader is being investigated about whether he should have declared a £5 million gift from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne.Evening Standard · 8 Nov, 11:18

In this story: Nigel Farage · Christopher Harborne · Daniel Greenberg · Reform UK · Parliament

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