Peers will debate a crackdown on political donations today amid alarm over Reform UK's £72 million windfall from a pair of crypto billionaires. Nigel Farage's party was handed £36 million each from crypto billionaires Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne in a move that has fired up growing pressure to curb political donations.
Landmark legislation before the Lords
Landmark legislation that could force Reform to hand back the cash will be debated by peers in the Lords today. Labour peer Lord Wills is expected to raise the issue of a cap on donations for all Brits.
Under the current version of the Representation of the People Bill, Brits living overseas will face a £100,000 cap on donations. This will be backdated to March so could include Mr Delo or Mr Harborne, who have both lived abroad until recently.
Reaction to the donations
Richard Tice this morning moaned that he is not an "executive assistant" to Reform UK's mega donors after facing questions on the donations. He insisted the donations are within the rules but could not provide details on when the pair of crypto billionaires moved to the UK.
Calls to slam the door on mega-donations have erupted after Reform trousered a record £72 million from two crypto billionaires. Elections expert Robert Hayward said electoral law was struggling to keep up with donations of this scale and warned it could trigger an "arms race" among political parties. "If we don't do anything about our law then there is no question, we will be into American politics where money buys attention, and attention buys votes," he told the BBC.
TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak told reporters on Sunday: "I think they are going to cause a crisis in our democracy." He said there was no comparison between a care worker or someone working in a car plant giving a few pounds a year to a union, which lobbies openly for its members.
Shockwaves through Westminster
MPs and peers will today return to Parliament after Reform UK's record donations sent shockwaves through Westminster over the weekend. The debate in the Lords comes as pressure mounts over the scale of the donations and their potential impact on political funding rules.
