Political donors could face tougher residency rules

Political donors could face tougher residency rules after Reform received donations totalling £72m from two British crypto-billionaires who have both recently lived abroad.

The government is planning to tighten residency rules for political donors to ensure that those giving significant amounts of money reside in the UK.

Nigel Farage says the donations from Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne comply with the current law, but he was unable to say they would be permissible under proposed rule changes.

The government wants to change the law on donations to UK political parties from British voters living overseas, including a £100,000 cap backdated to 25 March.

MPs have supported the government's proposals by approving amendments to the Representation of the People Bill. The bill is currently being scrutinised in the House of Lords.

Speaking as the bill was debated by peers, Communities Minister Baroness Taylor of Stevenage said: 'We are considering how we will strengthen the residency requirements, including ensuring that the length of time spent in the UK aligns with broader government policy. 'Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'Fundamentally we need to make sure that people who want to influence British politics have a stake in Britain. That should apply to everyone and will apply to everyone, so I wouldn't make it about any particular donations or anything that's been in the public domain. 'Liberal Democrat Cabinet Office spokeswoman Lisa Smart accused the government of 'playing whack-a-mole', as she said Labour's residency requirements aren't good enough.

Delo and Harborne each gave £36m to Reform in two days, now sharing the record for the largest ever donation given to a UK political party. Both men had already donated millions of pounds to Reform ahead of the announcement of their latest contributions.