The suspended parliamentary standards investigation into Nigel Farage over accusations he failed to declare gifts and donations has resumed after the Reform UK leader’s re-election as the MP for Clacton.The twofold investigation by Daniel Greenberg, the parliamentary commissioner for standards, was paused after Farage resigned from his seat and called a byelection in protest at what he said was unfair scrutiny of his finances.Now the investigation had restarted, according to the commissioner’s website, which said previously that the process had been suspended from 8 July, when the MP resigned.Farage said he wanted voters in Clacton to decide if he was fit to be an MP. However, all the main parties declined to stand, leaving him taking on dozens of novelty and fringe candidates, most prominent among them Count Binface.Greenberg is looking into whether Farage should have declared a £5m gift from the Thailand-based businessman Christopher Harborne, given to him before the last election. Farage has always said he was not in politics at the time the gift was made.The inquiry was later widened to look at whether he should have declared support from his friend, the fraudster George Cottrell, who let Farage use one of his London homes and also paid for some social media filming in 2024.If Farage is found to have broken parliamentary rules and is suspended from the Commons for at least 10 sitting days he could face a recall petition, where a byelection is called if at least 10% of local voters demand it.According to one report, Farage called his own byelection after his team advised that leaving parliament would end the investigation. In fact it only pauses such processes, which resume if the person is re-elected.Farage has said the investigation was “being used as a political tool”. One Reform MP, Sarah Pochin, called the process a “kangaroo court”.
Standards watchdog resumes investigation into Nigel Farage over financial gifts
Reform UK leader’s return to Clacton restarts inquiry into £5m gift from cyrpto-billionaire and support from fraudster







