Ministers seek retrospective law change to block Reform's £72m donations
The government is considering tightening residency rules to make the £72m given to Reform by two crypto billionaires illegal, a move Reform calls politically targeted.
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
The government is pressing ahead with plans to change political donation rules in a move that could force Reform UK to return £72m given by two crypto billionaires. The donations, announced over the weekend, are the largest in British political history and have triggered a fierce row about the influence of big money in politics.
The two donors, Christopher Harborne and Ben Delo, each gave Reform £36m. Both are British citizens but until recently lived in Thailand and Hong Kong respectively. A bill currently going through Parliament would cap donations from British citizens living abroad at £100,000 a year and require newly returned residents to wait 12 months before making larger gifts. Crucially, the government says the new rules will be backdated to March, when the change was first announced following an independent review into foreign interference.
That backdating is now at the centre of the controversy. The government argues it is necessary to stop people donating before the law takes effect. Reform's deputy leader, Richard Tice, insisted the donations were legal under the rules as they stand and accused ministers of trying to change the law retrospectively to damage his party. Nigel Farage, the party's leader, said any attempt to alter the rules after the money had been accepted would be fought "with all the might we have".
The debate is moving rapidly. The Representation of the People Bill is currently in the House of Lords, where peers are scrutinising the proposed donation cap. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds defended the government's approach, saying it was not about targeting one party but about ensuring that anyone wanting to influence British politics has a genuine connection to the UK. He also floated the possibility of enhanced residency tests, which could require donors to spend at least 180 days a year in the country.
Meanwhile, the Trades Union Congress, meeting in Brighton, issued a statement saying the scale of donations to Reform should "concern anyone who cares about the health and integrity of our democracy". The unions, which are major donors to Labour, have previously opposed caps on domestic donations, but their statement suggests they may now be open to restrictions on super-rich individuals. Unite's general secretary, Sharon Graham, said it felt "a bit ick" that two individuals could give so much in 48 hours.
Reform has rejected the criticism, arguing that it is merely catching up with the main parties. Since 2021, the Conservatives have raised around £150m and Labour £128m, while Reform's total, including the new donations, stands at about £110m. Lee Anderson, Reform's chairman, said the party wanted a level playing field and threatened to end trade union funding of Labour if the government did not back down.
The legal position remains uncertain. If the bill becomes law with retrospective effect, the Electoral Commission could rule that the donations were impermissible after royal assent, forcing Reform to hand the money back. But some legal experts have questioned whether such a retrospective move would be constitutional. The government insists it is consistent with standard practice: when a change is announced, it applies from that date to prevent people circumventing it.
The row has electrified Westminster, with other parties worried about Reform's ability to pour vast sums into campaigning ahead of the next general election. Some Labour MPs are calling for a wider cap on individual donations, while others fear a backlash if the law is seen as targeting one party. The debate is expected to continue in the Lords over the coming weeks.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, mapped by channel. Ordered by how many channels carried each claim.
| Claim | BBC News | BBC One | BBC Two | Channel 4 | GB News | Sky News |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ben Delo (based in Hong Kong) and Christopher Harborne (based in Thailand) gave £72 million to Reform UK. | · | · | ||||
| The government wants a cap of £100,000 per year for voters living abroad and a ban on cryptocurrency donations. | · | · | ||||
| A donation to a British political party was reported as the largest ever. | · | · | · | |||
| Reform UK condemned the government's plan to backdate donation limits. | · | · | · | · | ||
| Reform UK denied any wrongdoing and said it would cooperate with an investigation. | · | · | · | · | ||
| Reform UK's crypto billionaire donors could face enhanced checks to prove their continued presence in the UK. | · | · | · | · | ||
| The government is considering enhanced donor checks and a cap on overseas donations that would be backdated to March. | · | · | · | · | ||
| A senior Reform source said the £72m could be the tip of the iceberg, with more donations expected. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said the cap on overseas donations would take effect from the announcement to prevent pre-empting legislation. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Christopher Harborne joined the British electoral register again in June this year. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Reform chairman Lee Anderson said the party would legislate to stop unions funding Labour if the government pursued its current approach. | · | · | · | · | · | |
| Reform raised £110m since 2021, less than Conservatives' £150m and Labour's £128m. | · | · | · | · | · |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
Channel 4 gave the story sustained coverage across multiple bulletins, focusing on the political battle between Reform and the government, the retrospective nature of the law, and the wider implications for democracy. Their reporting included strong analysis from Gary Gibbon and reaction from both Nigel Farage and Angela Rayner, framing the donations as a potential turning point in party funding.
- “We are making sure that the British public can't be bought and their democracy can't be bought so that you have to be a British resident and a British taxpayer to donate to British political parties.”
- “If a jealous, vindictive bunch of socialists try to change what's currently in the House of Lords, then I think the British people will see them for what they are.”
- “Nigel Farage's sugar daddies made their money in crypto, but there's nothing cryptic about their motives.”
Sky News led with the practical implications of the law change, focusing on whether Reform would have to hand back the money, and on the unresolved question of when the two donors returned to the UK. They also highlighted union reactions at the TUC conference and the political row between Reform and the government.
- “All the advice is that these donations comply from these individuals and It's now up for the government to decide whether or not they want to change the rules yet again.”
- “I Don't see any equivalence at all and that I think it's worthwhile saying that that's 72 million pounds has been donated over the course Of this weekend is more than labor spent in the last four general elections combined.”
- “Most people would think that's a bit ick, that it feels a bit odd, that it feels not right.”
GB News adopted a strongly pro-Reform stance, presenting the government's move as an attempt to rig the political system. The channel gave a platform to Lee Anderson, who threatened to cut off union funding to Labour and framed the donations as levelling the playing field. The tone was combative, portraying Labour as panicking.
- “They're running scared, they're fricked at what's happening, and all we're doing really, Martin, is levelling up the playing field.”
- “We will introduce legislation that will stop the unions funding the Labour Party.”
- “I would say to Angela Rayner, you know, you get your hundreds of millions from unions, that comes with big strings attached.”
BBC Two's Politics Live treated the story as a live political and constitutional issue, featuring a panel discussion that weighed the risks of retrospective legislation. The report highlighted a Guardian headline about ministers seeking a law change, explained the possibility of an enhanced residency test based on tax rules, and included union statements from Brighton.
- “I think the government hasn't thought through the detail yet of what the qualifying rules would be”
- “If you look like you're changing the law to target one party politically that may generate a backlash which may help reform”
- “We don't want to have foreign interference in Britain”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.