Reform UK pays for Farage's security despite his claim a £5 million gift covers it

Nigel Farage's personal security has been paid for from Reform UK's central funds, even though he has said a £5 million gift from the billionaire donor Christopher Harborne was meant to cover it, the Guardian reported, citing sources. Reform UK declined to discuss specifics, with a spokesperson saying it does not comment on security matters as standard practice.

The Mirror, which also covered the story, reported that Reform disputes part of the Guardian's account, although not that the party pays for the leader's security more generally.

The story in numbers

£5 million: the gift Harborne gave Farage shortly before the 2024 general election. Harborne said it was meant to support Farage's security for the rest of his life.
More than £150,000: the security costs paid from central party funds over the past year, according to the Guardian's sources. The Mirror understands Reform disputes part of this account.
Two cars and a team: what the party has paid for since the taxpayer-funded protection Farage received was reduced after a review in 2025, the Guardian said.
£36 million each: the further sums that Harborne and the fellow crypto investor Ben Delo gave Reform in September.
5 April 2024: the date Harborne's lawyers give for the gift. Financial industry sources told the Guardian that part of the money did not arrive until the end of May, just before Farage announced on 3 June that he would stand as an MP.

What the reports say about the security arrangements

According to the Guardian, Farage was offered a reduced package of taxpayer-funded protection after the 2025 review, comprising a bodyguard, a driver and a car, similar to the arrangement for Kemi Badenoch. He declined it, and the party has covered his security since. The Guardian also reported that costs charged to Reform included security changes to properties, among them homes used by his family, and that the party-funded team has been used for some of his personal activities, according to sources. The Mirror said Reform disputes the point about property costs.

The Guardian understands Reform draws a line between security needed because of Farage's political work, which the party pays for, and his possible longer-term personal needs, which the gift was meant to cover. The Mirror was told by an insider that the £5 million has not been spent because it is intended for his security after his political career ends. Neither outlet reported what has happened to the money, and the party would not say whether any of it has been spent on security.

Why it matters: questions over the gift

The report adds to scrutiny of how Farage has explained the money. The Guardian said his account has varied, and the Mirror noted he suggested in May that it rewarded his Brexit campaigning and said in June that how he spends it was not the public's business. Undercover footage from last month appeared to show his aide Dan Jukes saying that was not the line to take. Jukes has since stood down from Reform and denies any wrongdoing. According to the Mirror, Parliament's standards watchdog is investigating Farage over his failure to declare the money, which he says was a personal gift and did not need declaring.

Labour chair Bridget Phillipson said Farage's excuses had fallen apart and that he should be honest with the public. A Conservative spokesperson said he should come clean about where the money has gone and what it was for. Lawyers for Harborne have previously said he expected nothing in return for the gift.

Around Prague, based on reporting by The Guardian, Mirror

Cover photo: Laurie Noble / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0, cropped

Share: Telegram WhatsApp