Reform Donor Moved $2m to Mother Before Party Gifts
A close associate of Reform UK, George Cottrell, transferred around $2m to his mother shortly before she made a series of donations to the party, according to an investigation that raises fresh questions over the source of its funding. The transfers, reported on Thursday, add to the scrutiny the party has faced over the transparency of its finances. Reform has previously rejected suggestions of impropriety in its fundraising.
Party donations in Britain must come from permissible sources, and questions over who ultimately provides the money can carry legal as well as reputational weight. The allegations land as Reform, which had led the polls for much of the year, contends with a Labour revival under Andy Burnham. Regulators at the Electoral Commission have the power to investigate the origin of large gifts. For a party that has made much of the political establishment’s failings, the funding questions are especially awkward. Watch whether the Commission examines the transfers.