Undercover reporters posing as party donors met with Nigel Farage and his former chief of staff Dan Jukes (left) Nigel Farage has admitted he “frankly wasn’t listening” during a conversation in which senior Reform UK figures discussed a potential £500,000 donation from an American donor — deepening the crisis engulfing the party. Former chief of staff Dan Jukes and ex-head of policy James Orr have both stood down after an undercover investigation recorded them discussing how foreign money could reach Reform. The proposed donation was never made, but the episode has triggered calls for a police investigation. Farage insists he knew the rules — but failed to hear the conversation Speaking to the BBC, Farage said he was campaigning in the Clacton by-election when the conversation took place and insisted he understood electoral law. He said he had been told the money could come through a London-based global family office, adding that he knew “donation law better than anybody”. Farage also said Jukes and Orr had never handled fundraising before and should have carried out basic checks before bringing potential donors to him. Reform has denied ever accepting foreign money through a UK donor. Jukes denies wrongdoing, while Orr has said he will co-operate fully with the party’s internal investigation. Police pressure grows as Reform’s conference is overshadowed Labour and the Liberal Democrats have called for the Metropolitan Police to investigate. The force is assessing whether action should be taken. The scandal has threatened to derail Reform’s conference, where the party had hoped to showcase its plans for government, including tax cuts and policies on education, welfare and planning. Instead, the controversy over money and political influence has dominated attention. Farage reveals his family are begging him to quit The pressure has become deeply personal for Farage, who revealed that, for the first time, his family no longer supports his political career. “They would rather I packed it up and walked away,” he told the BBC. He insisted he had not considered standing down, but admitted: “When you’ve got your family begging you to, it’s not easy.” The latest scandal comes after a difficult summer for Reform and a recent polling slump, raising fresh questions about whether Farage can keep the rapidly expanding party under control as scrutiny intensifies. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0qxgn7q1vdo
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