Ben Habib has claimed that billionaire Christopher Harborne donated approximately £14 million to the Brexit Party in 2019—exceeding the publicly reported £10 million—just days before announcing the wind-down of his own political party, Advance UK.
The revelation has triggered a major investigative series on The Rest Is Politics, where host Rory Stewart explained they are digging into Reform UK's finances, noting that Nigel Farage received a five million pound contribution towards his security from Harborne. Journalist Cat Neelan introduced Habib as a businessman who, until this point, has been a supporter of and donor to the Conservative Party before he joined Farage's movement.
Speaking on the podcast, Ben Habib recalled his shared history with Harborne and their mutual frustration with the Conservative Party, noting we both discussed how we loathe the way the Conservative Party had ceased to be conservative. Yet Habib admitted he was completely in the dark about the scale of his associate's wealth, confessing, "I had no idea how rich Christopher Harborne was when I first met him."
As Habib now winds down Advance UK to merge its remaining infrastructure with the Great British Political Action Committee to avoid splitting the right-wing vote, his sudden candor about the Brexit Party's millions will likely complicate Farage's efforts to keep Reform's financial backers out of the spotlight.