Farage received £5 million donation after saying he needed at least £1 million a year to return to politics

Nigel Farage took the £5 million donation from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne after reportedly saying that he needed at least “a million a year” to cover lost earnings if he became an MP.

As reported by The Guardian, in March 2024, Farage told senior figures in Reform UK that he would lose out on earnings from his lucrative GB News role, which paid him over £1 million a year.

At the time, he believed he would have to give up his GB News job if he entered Parliament.

According to one source, Farage said he could not put himself “through the wringer” of standing and “end up skint”. He also said he was being “properly paid” for the first time in years.

Farage also told Reform insiders that he would need to be compensated for the “financial harm” of giving up his City career to spend 20 years campaigning and standing for election again.

Farage was an MEP from 1999 to 31 January 2020 when Britain left the European Union.

Insiders and donors insisted that Farage needed to return to politics and lead Reform into the 2024 and 2029 general elections. The Reform leader argued this would cost him £5 million. 

Harborne’s lawyers have said that the crypto investor gave Farage the gift in April 2024.

Farage insists that he did not need to declare the £5 million donation from Harborne, as it was a “personal” and “unconditional” gift that he received before becoming an MP.

Harborne’s lawyers have said they “expected nothing in return” for the donation and “did not envisage Mr Farage returning to politics”.

Since becoming an MP in July 2024, Farage has also made nearly £2 million from second jobs since becoming an MP in July 2024. This includes more than £680,000 for promoting the gold dealer Gold Bullion, and £640,000 from his role at GB News. 

Olivia Barber is a reporter at Left Foot Forward