UK Parliament Eyes Reform Party's Crypto Donations
Reform UK's huge crypto donations have raised concerns about their legitimacy. The party received £72m from two billionaire donors, Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne, on Friday and Saturday in two payments of £36m each.
The housing secretary, Angela Rayner, has warned that the party may not be able to keep all of this money under new laws being pushed through parliament. The laws will cover donations from March 25th onwards and are intended to prevent foreign interference in UK politics.
Rayner said that 'we need to have secure elections that are for the people, and that you can't buy your way into our democracy.' She also stated that 'if you don't pay taxes in, you don't live here, you can't buy your way into our democracy because you're a billionaire.'
Reform UK has defended the donations, saying they are from 'two patriotic British businessmen who have got behind us, everything that we stand for.' The party's Treasury spokesperson, Robert Jenrick, said that the donors will not be rewarded with honors or government contracts in return for their money.