Nigel Farage pal issues 4-word verdict when asked if Reform UK leader will quit.TA
Nigel Farage is under pressure to answer questions regarding donations made by Christopher Harborneand a relationship with convicted fraudster George Cottrell
Nigel Farage is under pressure due to links with George Cottrell and Christopher Harborne (file) (Image: Getty)
A friend of Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has issued a four-word verdict on whether the politician will step down. Pressure is mounting on Farage over his links with George Cottrell, a convicted fraudster who donated money to Farage before he was elected as the Member of Parliament for Clacton-on-Sea.
A further £5million donation was accepted from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne, adding more pressure to Farage. The standards watchdog will weigh in on whether he was right to not declare the cash from Harborne. A friend of Farage who spent time with the Reform UK party leader in recent weeks has since suggested he will not resign from the party despite growing pressure to do so.
The unnamed pal responded: “Of course he’s tired.”
Explaining the party leader’s exhaustion, Mr Farage’s friend continued: “He’s just done two months campaigning every day on the road, it would be weird if he wasn’t. But that doesn’t mean he’s going to quit.” According to an unnamed source at Millbank HQ, speaking to The Guardian, Farage is even freezing out his own MPs as they cannot schedule meetings with him.
The source said: “There is a very different feel to Farage these days from even a few years ago. He’s on a really tight schedule, and that’s understandable, but that also means even some of his fellow MPs can’t get appointments and end up complaining that their own donors can’t get face time with him.”
A separate source who once advised Farage says the politician should have laid low while these investigations were ongoing. They said: “His strategy of lying low is the right one for the moment and he should have stuck to that.”
Farage’s friend says the leader will not step down despite mounting pressure (file) (Image: Getty)
Farage appears to have broken parliamentary rules by accepting accommodation, drivers, and security that were paid for by Cottrell, a convicted criminal who was jailed for his part in a US money laundering conspiracy.
Farage still benefits from Cottrell’s support according to a report in the Sunday Times which outlined how the Reform leader had stayed in a five-storey townhouse rented by the convicted fraudster.
Cottrell has no official role in Reform but insiders speaking with the Sunday Times described him as Farage’s closest aide. Farage has defended the decision not to disclose the pre-election support as he argues this predates his decision to run for parliament. He also said he does not need to disclose the use of Cottrell’s townhouse as this is provided to him by a close friend.
The Daily Express has contacted Reform UK for comment.
