THE FUSE

Reform UK has received a record £9m donation from cryptocurrency investor and aviation entrepreneur Christopher Harborne, new figures from the Electoral Commission show.

It is the largest ever single donation by a living person to a British political party.

Mr Harborne, who is British but lives in Thailand, has previously given large sums to the Conservatives under Boris Johnson's leadership, as well as Reform's predecessor the Brexit Party in 2019 and 2020.

While the next general election is not due until 2029, the donation comes ahead of local elections next May.

Reform UK has been consistently leading in national opinion polls since the spring.

Mr Harborne's donation breaks the previous record for a living person, which was £8m from supermarket tycoon Lord David Sainsbury to the Liberal Democrats in 2019.

His cousin Lord John Sainsbury left £10m to the Conservatives in his will in 2022.

Two of Mr Harborne's businesses - AML Global and Sherriff Group - are linked to private aircraft and aviation.

Reform UK received donations totalling more than £10.2m between July and September, according to the Electoral Commission figures.

This was more than the Conservatives, who received £4.6m in donations, followed by Labour on £2.1m and the Liberal Democrats on £1m.