Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has pushed back against Labour’s proposal to retroactively ban donations to his party, warning of potential reforms targeting the Labour Party’s financial backing from the trade unions.
| PULSE POINTS |
❓ WHAT HAPPENED: Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage has threatened to cut off the governing Labour Party’s funding lifeline from the country’s trade unions. 📺 DETAIL: Following back-to-back £36 million (~$48 million) donations to Reform from British cryptocurrency entrepreneurs Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne, the Labour government announced plans to restrict donations to political parties. Among other measures, the British government has floated retroactively banning the donations from Delo and Harborne to Reform. In response, Farage highlighted Labour’s reliance on donations from trade unions, which have totaled over £53 million ($72 million) since 2010. The Reform leader also accused the Labour Party of using “old communist state” tactics as well as rewarding its donors with favorable legislation and government contracts. Farage warned that if Labour retroactively bans the combined £72 million (~$97 million) contribution from Delo and Harborne, a Reform-led government will introduce legislation to ban trade union donations to political parties. The Reform leader clarified that neither Delo nor Harborne would be given positions in the House of Lords, the upper house of Britain’s legislature, which is populated by political appointees. “Neither Ben Delo nor Christopher Harborne will be getting membership of the House of Lords. It isn’t happening. We’re not for sale,” Farage declared. 💬 KEY QUOTE: “If anybody is giving money to do political bidding, it’s the trade unions,” said Farage in a recent video posted on X (formerly Twitter). 🎯 IMPACT: If Labour succeeds in retroactively banning the donations, it could set a controversial precedent for rewriting laws to target political opponents. If Reform is elected and manages to pass legislation to ban donations from trade unions, the Labour Party would be cut off from its primary source of funding, radically altering the political landscape. 📺 FLASHBACK: Delo and Harborne announced their donations earlier this month. Both men argued that the large donations are necessary to help Reform overcome the inbuilt advantages afforded to the two main establishment parties, namely Labour and the Conservatives (Tories). This follows government legislation limiting donations from British expatriates to £100,000 (~$135,000), a move widely seen as targeting Delo and Harborne, who were based in Hong Kong and Thailand, respectively, but have since relocated to Britain. |
We will fight any attempt by Labour to retrospectively change the law on donations.
Labour and the Tories have handed out peerages and honours to big donors for years.
Reform is the only party that doesn’t sell political favours. We will fix broken Britain. pic.twitter.com/GLU5ZdXpbg
— Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) September 14, 2026
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