Nowak calls Nigel Farage ‘a politician for sale’ who will ‘sell our country down the river’

TUC Congress 2026 / 13 September 2026 Trade unionists say no to Trump's war in Latin America 13 September 2026 Democracy / 13 September 2026 TUC rejects comparisons between Reform's billionaire donations and trade union funding of Labour 13 September 2026 Housing Crisis / 13 September 2026 ‘Slim chance’ government will meet 1.5m homes target by next election, Rayner acknowledges 13 September 2026 Anti-fascism / 13 September 2026 Solidarity outnumbers hate on Glasgow Green 13 September 2026 Far Right / 13 September 2026 Portsmouth experiences second weekend of anti-immigration protests 13 September 2026 Climate Crisis / 13 September 2026 Activists disrupt British Museum opening of the Bayeux tapestry over BP partnership 13 September 2026 STOP the super-rich from corrupting our politics, unions demanded today as peers considered new restrictions on overseas donors after Reform UK was handed £72 million in just two days.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage acknowledged the twin £36m gifts from crypto-currency billionaires Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne could fall foul of potential new laws under consideration.

Mr Farage told the BBC today that he believed the two donations were “compliant” with current laws, but suggested they would not be acceptable as a result of a law change in the Representation of the People Bill, subject to debate in the House of Lords.

Changes in the Bill included limiting expat donations to £100,000, which would apply to the first 12 months after they return to the UK. They would also be backdated to March 25 of this year.

Hong Kong-based Mr Delo said in April he would return to Britain to circumvent any such rule, and Mr Harborne was previously living in Thailand but was reported in June to have registered to vote in Hampshire.

TUC general secretary Paul Nowak warned the millions handed to the hard-right party from these billionaires pose a “crisis for our democracy.”

He urged ministers to immediately implement a permanent ban on crypto donations, overseas donations as well as political ads funded by foreign sources.

Speaking at his keynote address to the TUC Congress, Mr Nowak said: “Christopher Harborne and the other dodgy overseas donors should be told clearly — no representation without taxation!

“Don’t live in Britain? Don’t pay your taxes in Britain? Then don’t meddle in British politics.

“Want to donate to a political party? Then show us where the money is coming from. No hiding behind Bitcoin, Tether, or any other cryptocurrency. It’s time to ban crypto donations once and for all.

“And want to campaign in our elections? Then no more disinformation, and no more foreign funding for political ads. Elon Musk, keep your grubby hands out of British politics.”

The TUC leader slammed Reform as a “party for sale” and that its leader Nigel Farage is a “politician for sale.”

“Given half the chance, they’d sell our country down the river,” Mr Nowak added.

Amid a wave of far-right protests, Nowak will attack the “nasty politics that links Nigel Farage, Tommy Robinson, Rupert Lowe with Trump, MAGA and the US white supremacist movement,”

“Make no mistake, this is a crisis for our democracy. We cannot allow our political system to be captured by corporate interests.”

Mr Nowak called for a “proper conversation about how we clean up our politics that doesn’t push workers to the margins — but does stop the super-rich corrupting our politics.”

In the wake of far-right anti-migrant rioters blocking roads and ports in Dover and Portsmouth over the past two weeks, the TUC leader reminded delegates: “It starts with demonising migrants. 

“It flies flags, not as an expression of national pride, but to intimidate. It fans the literal flames that set fire to hostels and libraries.

“And it ends up with proto-fascist mobs roaming our streets in balaclavas, targeting brave volunteers in lifeboats.

“That is not the sort of Britain that decent, fair-minded people want to live in. We are better than that. Working people are better than that. And Britain is better than that.”

Opening the debate in the House of Lords yesterday, Sharon Taylor, a local government minister, spoke in favour of new rules which would “ensures donors contributing above the £100,000 annual cap must demonstrate a genuine and ongoing connection to the United Kingdom.”

She added that ministers were “considering how we will strengthen the residency requirements, including ensuring the length of time spent in the UK.”