Nigel Farage is under fresh scrutiny over his claim that he bought his £1.4m Surrey home using his fee from the reality show I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, rather than a gift from a crypto billionaire. Accounts for his media company, Thorn in the Side Ltd, suggest the money was not withdrawn at the time of the purchase.
The Reform UK leader received a £5m gift from Christopher Harborne, a billionaire based in Thailand, weeks before buying the house on 10 May 2024. Farage has not declared the gift to the parliamentary register, prompting an investigation by the standards commissioner. He claims the money was for security, but has also described it as an unconditional reward for his Brexit campaigning.
Accounts for Thorn in the Side Ltd show its cash position rose from £300,000 in May 2023 to £1.7m in May 2024, and then to £2m by May 2025. No dividends were paid out, and the company's cash did not decrease at the time of the house purchase. Farage bought the property personally, with no mortgage.
A Reform spokesperson insisted the house was not bought with Harborne's gift, pointing to anti-money laundering checks carried out before the gift was made. However, the spokesperson did not confirm whether Farage stands by his claim that the reality show fee funded the purchase. Tax expert Nimesh Shah said the accounts suggest otherwise.
If found to have breached parliamentary rules, Farage could face suspension and a potential by-election in his Clacton constituency. Harborne donated £12m to Reform last year, making him one of the UK's biggest political donors.
