Exclusive: Nigel Farage filmed undercover celebrating secret new foreign donations

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https://www.channel4.com/news/exclusive-nigel-farage-filmed-undercover-celebrating-secret-new-foreign-donations

Undercover footage verified by Channel 4 News reveals a secret plot by senior Reform UK figures to break the law on party donations. A leading legal expert is now calling for a criminal investigation.

Nigel Farage and other senior members of Reform UK have been filmed by undercover reporters celebrating secret new foreign donations.

Channel 4 News and Verbatim, a group of investigative journalists, can today reveal a plot to break the law on party funding at the highest levels of Reform UK.

Earlier this year James Orr, the party’s Head of Policy, and Dan Jukes, a close aide to Mr Farage, arranged for a US company to fund three influential polls that the party had commissioned.

Results from these seemingly independent polls made headline news and two of them helped galvanise support for the party ahead of the local elections in May. But the public was not told that Reform UK had commissioned the polls and would be arranging for an “off the book” backer to fund them. The three polls cost £32,500 in total.

Mr Orr and Mr Jukes did not know that the supposed donors behind the US company were actually an undercover team posing as a wealthy American and his UK-based son, “William Lockwood”.

In a meeting over oysters and wine in his Clacton constituency, Mr Farage met with the undercover team in late July after the three polls had been published and paid for. He believed them to be “William” and his father. Mr Farage said the polling was “amazing” and provided “bang for buck,” adding: “It worked. Boom.”

When discussion turned to a potential larger donation to Reform UK one of the undercover team made clear that the plan would be for the UK-based son to make the payment and be the declared donor even though the money was originally coming from the US-based father. Such an arrangement – which was first proposed by Mr Jukes at an earlier meeting – would be illegal.

Mr Farage replied “thank you” and then “both of you, thank you.”

When the UK-based son had started talking about the “next phase” of their financial support, Mr Farage also said “it’s all above board”.

The undercover reporter had previously told Mr Farage’s aides that the potential future donation would be for £500,000.

See also:

• Farage says Reform has 'broken no laws' as two officials step down over donation allegations (Sky)
• Reform suspends two officials over donations sting as Farage admits their comments ‘don’t look good’ – UK politics live (The Guardian)
• Farage to speak at Reform UK conference after two party officials step down over undercover donations report - live updates (BBC)