Nigel Farage has said Sky News bosses face “serious consequences” in an outburst triggered by questions over fresh revelations about his finances. The Reform UK leader, MP for Clacton, confronted a Sky News journalist who asked whether it had been a mistake not to declare gifts from his longtime ally George Cottrell, a convicted fraudster.
Farage's heated exchange with Sky News
Speaking as he returned from Independence Day celebrations in the US, Farage said: “You tell your bosses: you harass my family any more, there will be serious consequences, that’s what your organisation has done this morning, now go away.” When the journalist repeated the question, Farage continued: “Did you not hear me? You have broken all the rules, Leveson and everything else, cut.” The Leveson inquiry was a judicial public inquiry into the culture, practices and ethics of the British press after the News International phone-hacking scandal.
Sky News later stated it had not contacted anyone from Farage’s family about the story. Farage released a statement on Sunday evening claiming he was the victim of an “establishment hit job” and said he had followed the rules over the support he had received from Cottrell. He added: “I have done no wrongdoing, followed the rules and I am now considering legal action against the Sunday Times.”
Background on George Cottrell and the funding
The Sunday Times revealed that Farage had received funding from Cottrell, who was jailed for eight months in the US in 2017 after pleading guilty to wire fraud. Cottrell admitted attempting to defraud criminals on the dark web by masquerading as a money launderer. He was arrested as he and Farage travelled back to Britain after a trip to the US.
Farage is also being investigated by the parliamentary standards watchdog over a £5m gift received from crypto-billionaire Christopher Harborne in the weeks before announcing he would stand as a candidate in the 2024 general election.
Political reactions and potential consequences
Labour and the Liberal Democrats have called for parliament’s standards commissioner, who is already investigating the £5m gift from Harborne, to examine the support from Cottrell. If found to have breached the rules, Farage could face sanctions including a Commons suspension that could trigger a recall petition and a byelection in his seat.
On Monday night, Donald Trump appeared to back Farage, sharing a link to an article titled “They’re running the 2024 anti-Trump playbook on Nigel Farage” on his Truth Social platform.
Reform UK’s deputy leader, Richard Tice, downplayed the controversy on Tuesday, claiming voters were not concerned by Farage’s finances. He told the Institute for Government: “There have been lots of elections recently. The May elections were after Nigel’s gift was announced. The last two weeks of [council] byelections, we’re winning them by significant percentages. We’ve won most of them. So, ultimately, got to trust the voter and the voters will tell us.” He added: “Are we available to scrutiny? Of course. Is everybody perfect? No, no one’s perfect.”
Tice also said the country should change its culture so “working hard, being successful, making money, employing people … is a good thing”. He said: “In a sense, we have to celebrate that, because otherwise, you constantly end up dumbing down, and then don’t be surprised if some of the best people don’t go into politics.”
