Reform UK officials resign as foreign funding allegations trigger internal probe

Reform UK’s head of policy, James Orr, and senior aide Dan Jukes have resigned pending an internal investigation into allegations raised by a Channel 4 undercover investigation.

The report alleged that a US company was to pay more than £30,000 for three opinion polls commissioned by the party. Undercover footage also appeared to show discussions about securing a possible £500,000 donation from a US donor, which could breach UK electoral law.

Reform said the officials had stepped down while its investigation proceeds. Labour and other parties said they had reported the allegations to police. The claims have not been established by a court or regulator, and the source material does not establish that the larger donation or any other foreign funds were ultimately transferred.

Reform leader Nigel Farage denied that the party had accepted illegal money and said no rules had been broken. He described the undercover filming as “a prolonged exercise in entrapment”, while acknowledging that comments attributed to Orr and Jukes were “injudicious at best”.

The allegations overshadowed Reform’s annual conference in Birmingham, where Farage sought to set out the party’s programme, including anti-immigration policies and proposed cooperation with France’s National Rally. Farage is also facing a parliamentary investigation into a separate £5 million donation from cryptocurrency businessman Christopher Harborne in 2024, an allegation over which he denies wrongdoing.