Reform ‘not aware’ of more large gifts but cannot check all members, says Tice

Party’s deputy faces questions at first press conference since Nigel Farage’s £5m from crypto billionaire revealed

Reform UK is “not aware” of any other large gifts to Nigel Farage or other senior party figures apart from the £5m from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne, but cannot check every member’s bank accounts, the party’s deputy leader has said.

Richard Tice, who is second in command to Farage, was given a grilling over the controversial £5m gift as the party gave its first press conference since the personal donation was revealed by the Guardian.

Tice insisted that the party was not avoiding scrutiny and said neither he nor Farage were afraid of questions about the £5m, which was given before the general election.

Asked whether Farage or other senior Reform figures had taken any more large personal gifts, Tice appeared unable to categorically rule this out. He said: “None that I’m aware of. The answer is none that any of us are aware of.”

When later pressed on whether he had tried to find out about further private gifts given by Harborne or other donors, he said: “At the end of the day, we are saying to people: ‘You’ve got to trust us.’ Have I checked the bank account of every single one out of thousands of Reform members? We are working incredibly hard and are confident in what we’re doing and, at all times, our clear view is we’re complying with the rules.”

The senior Reform politician, who was leader before Farage returned in 2024, explained that Farage had not appeared at a press conference for almost 50 days because he was keen to show the party had a broad range of talent.

“Absence makes the heart grow fonder,” he said. “But in all seriousness, it’s part of this whole point about proving that we are a growing team with people across a range of different groups.”