The Papers: Reform donors ‘could face enhanced checks’ and ‘Sydney Sweeney blasted’
The Papers: Reform donors 'could face enhanced checks' and 'Sydney Sweeney blasted'. Several papers feature actor Sydney Sweeney, who has been criticised by female athletes for posing nude for a sports betting company advert.
What happened
Image source, EPA/ShutterstockImage caption, Reform leader Nigel Farage says the donations from Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne comply with the current lawByRichard Wheeler, Political reporter and Nick Eardley and Iain Watson, Political correspondentsPublished15 September 2026, 11:55 BSTUpdated 34 minutes agoThe government is planning to tighten residency rules for political donors to ensure that those giving significant amounts of money reside in the UK. Challenged on whether the government was targeting Reform donors, Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said policy on donations is "never about one political party or one particular set of issues".
"When the government set out its plans to cap foreign donations in March and July, it did not mention the idea of an enhanced residency test for political donors. The announcement follows a row over two donations totalling £72m to Reform UK from two British crypto-billionaires who have both recently lived abroad. Reform leader Nigel Farage said the donations from Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne are "100% compliant with the law today" but he was unable to say they would be permissible under proposed rule changes.
Row over Reform's mega donations has mileage in it yetPublished14 hours agoUnions warn against 'out of control' political spendingPublished1 hour agoMPs have supported the government's proposals by approving amendments to the Representation of the People Bill. "Baroness Taylor said this was "in addition to introducing a robust regime that ensures that donors contributing above the £100,000 annual cap must demonstrate a genuine and ongoing connection" to the UK.
The wider picture
Asked repeatedly by reporters whether the idea of tightening residency rules had only been discussed after Delo and Harborne's most recent donations to Reform, the prime minister's official spokesman would not give a timeframe. "We or the Conservatives would say 'if you're going to stop legitimate donors like this, we would say to the trade unions, you can't give money'. Image caption, Since the 2024 election, the Conservative Party has raised £37m, Reform has raised £35m before Delo and Harborne's large donations, Labour had raised £21m, the Liberal Democrats £17m and the Green Party £1.
There are currently no restrictions on the amount of money UK-based donors can give to political parties. The government has previously said it was "determined to tackle" the issue of "mega-donors", and has established a new taskforce to do this. Before the joint statement was issued, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham told the BBC that "we're talking about apples and pears" when asked about the donations to Reform and those from trade unions. "I think most people will think two crypto billionaires giving £72m to Reform in two days is a problem for British politics and if it's wrong then deal with it.
"Delo and Harborne each gave £36m to Reform in two days and now share the record for the largest ever donation given to a UK political party.
What has been reported
Both men had already donated millions of pounds to Reform ahead of the announcement of their latest contributions. Related topicsReform UKMore on this storyWho is Reform donor and crypto billionaire Ben Delo? Published3 days agoBurnham to tackle 'mega-donors' in UK politics, minister saysPublished3 SeptemberNigel Farage tells BBC he 'wasn't listening' during foreign donor talks filmed undercoverPublished6 September The government wants to change the law on donations to UK political parties from British voters living overseas, including a £100,000 cap backdated to 25 March.
It also wants to introduce a minimum residency period of at least 12 months in which the cap would still apply for those who move back to the UK. It is not currently clear exactly when Delo and Harborne returned to the UK. Under the current rules, foreign donations are illegal in the UK, but British voters living abroad can give as much as they want to political parties. The bill is currently being scrutinised in the House of Lords.
What happens next
Speaking as the bill was debated by peers, Communities Minister Baroness Taylor of Stevenage said: "We are considering how we will strengthen the residency requirements, including ensuring that the length of time spent in the UK aligns with broader government policy. Tax is one area that already has residency requirements. The criteria includes someone being declared resident for tax purposes if they have lived in the UK for at least 183 days in the tax year.
He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "Fundamentally we need to make sure that people who want to influence British politics, who want a say in British politics have a stake in Britain. "That should apply to everyone and will apply to everyone, so I wouldn't make it about any particular donations or anything that's been in the public domain. Liberal Democrat Cabinet Office spokeswoman Lisa Smart accused the government of "playing whack-a-mole", as she said Labour's residency requirements "aren't good enough".
She said: "We must urgently go further and introduce a universal donation cap to stop Trump's America becoming Farage's Britain.