Tech billionaire Elon Musk has reportedly told an associate that it will be difficult to pump cash into Reform UK now he is part of Donald Trump’s government in the US
Elon Musk has reportedly downplayed the possibility of giving a donation to Reform UK in humiliation for Nigel Farage.
The tech billionaire has told an associate that it will be difficult to pump cash into the political party now he is part of Donald Trump’s government in the US, the Financial Times reported. Musk has joined the administration as the head of DOGE – the Department of Government Efficiency – which is a unit focused on cutting supposedly wasteful spending across official agencies.
It is reported that Musk did not meet Mr Farage in Washington DC when the Clacton MP jetted to the US to support Mr Trump’s inauguration. And now there are possible concerns that a donation from Musk, as a senior member of Mr Trump’s administration, could cause tensions between the US and UK, where Labour is control. It comes after Mr Farage previously claimed Musk was giving “serious thought” to donating to Reform UK.
It is the latest embarrassment for Mr Farage after Musk dramatically turned on him earlier this month. The boss of Tesla and Twitter/X posted on social media: “The Reform Party needs a new leader. Farage doesn’t have what it takes.” The unexpected comment came just hours after a fawning Mr Farage branded him a “hero” and said his support makes his party “look cool”.
Musk met with him and Reform UK’s treasurer Nick Candy in December at Mr Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, fuelling speculation about a substantial donation. After the trip Mr Candy, a billionaire property tycoon who is married to actress and pop star Holly Valance, claimed Musk was among a “number of billionaires” considering a donation to Reform UK. Having arranged the meeting between Mr Musk and Mr Farage, the treasurer said Mr Musk would “be the first of many wealthy donors legally allowed to donate”.
Foreign donations to UK-based political parties is already banned. However, parties can accept donations from a number of sources including individuals on the UK electoral register or a UK-registered company. It means Mr Musk could donate through any of his UK-based businesses, such as the UK arm of Twitter.
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There’s no set limit on the level of donations that can be funnelled through UK companies from overseas. The current rules just say that the original source of the funds must be declared publicly if they’re over a certain threshold. The rules ensure transparency, but don’t actually prevent overseas donations.
The head of the Electoral Commission, Vijay Rangarajan, has called for the rules to be strengthened to “protect the electoral system from foreign interference”. Labour’s election manifesto committed to strengthening the rules around donations to political parties. But Commons Leader Lucy Powell last month admitted there are no immediate plans to tighten rules on foreign donations.
A Reform UK spokesman confirmed to the FT that Musk had not made a donation to date, saying: “We have a good relationship with Elon Musk and will continue to do so.”