Nigel Farage earned £270,000 for just 12 hours of work over three months promoting gold bullion, according to his latest financial declaration. The Reform UK leader works as a brand ambassador for Direct Bullion, and this has become one of his most lucrative income sources outside his parliamentary role.
Lucrative Side Gigs
The £270,000 payment for 12 hours of work equates to £22,500 per hour. In addition, Farage declared £18,402 for approximately six hours of presenting his show on GB News, which works out to over £3,000 per hour. However, his entry in the register of financial interests notably lacks new declarations from the video recording site Cameo, where he has earned nearly £90,000 over the past year. He stopped using Cameo earlier this year after controversy over videos, including one used by a far-right group to promote an event.
Political Criticism
Labour Party chair Anna Turley criticised Farage's gold promotion earnings, saying he 'pretends to be on the side of ordinary working people but in truth he’s just in it for himself and will sell his time to the highest bidder.' A spokesman for Farage defended the arrangement, stating: 'As has previously been reported and declared, Nigel Farage is a brand ambassador for Direct Bullion.'
Ongoing Scrutiny Over £5 Million Gift
Farage continues to face pressure over a £5 million 'gift' from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne in January 2024, before he returned as Reform leader and was elected as an MP that summer. The parliamentary standards watchdog is investigating whether the Clacton MP should have declared the money if it was related to his political activity. Farage has changed his explanation for the gift, initially claiming it was for security before saying it was a 'reward' for his Brexit campaigning. In recent TV interviews, he refused to say whether he had spent any of the money on security, housing, or anything else. He told BBC Breakfast: 'Let’s be clear, it’s an unconditional gift. I can spend it on cars if I want to. It’s entirely up to me, right.' Harborne also funded Farage's £29,000 flight to the Maldives earlier this year for a visit to the Chagos Islands.
