Reform voters ship Nigel Farage message about political donors in main ballot
The survey has been released by the Trades Union Congress as it launches its ‘Unity Works’ initiative which will confront growing division, economic insecurity and inequality
More than half of supporters of Nigel Farage’s party want unity over division from politicians, the study shows(Image: Mark Thomas/Shutterstock)
Almost three-quarters of people think large donors to political parties have too much influence over UK politics – including seven in 10 Reform UK supporters, new polling shows.
More than half of supporters of Nigel Farage’s party want unity over division from politicians by a margin of two to one – 54% to 22%. Just 12% of the public think progress depends on competition between different communities with different ideas and priorities, YouGov’s survey showed, with 69% believing that working together leads to better outcomes for everyone.
The survey has been released by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) as it launches its “Unity Works” initiative on Wednesday which will confront growing division, economic insecurity and inequality.
Speaking to the Mirror, TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said Britain “feels a very divided place at the moment” and that there is a “growing cynicism” in politics and politicians.
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Mr Nowak said: “At the end of the day, what we all want is a sense that politics is working for ordinary working people, their families and communities and it’s hard to do that when you’ve got outside interests, particularly outside interest based often abroad, funnelling huge amounts of money into British politics. They’re not doing it for nothing. They’re clearly doing it to try and influence the political process.”
He raised concerns about crypto investor Christopher Harborne, who last August gave £9million – the biggest single donation in history – to Reform UK. He gave another £3million to the right-wing outfit in November. Mr Nowak said there is a case to be made for preventing those based predominantly overseas from influencing British politics, as well as for more generally limiting donations made by wealthy individuals.
The TUC boss added that their “Unity Works” was partisan as he mentioned how the Peter Mandelson scandal had also had an impact on trust in politics. “We want to use this campaign to build a better Britain, to bring people together and to focus on the bread and butter issues that I think really matter to people,” he said.
“That’s decent pay, decent rights at work, strong public services, fair taxes – so those with the broadest shoulders are paying a fairer share – and also cleaning up our politics. I think what the Mandelson scandal has revealed is there’s a public appetite there for countering the effect of power and money in our politics.”
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Meanwhile, a group of cross-party MPs has on Wednesday called for new rules requiring overseas individuals to have held sufficient UK assets registered with HMRC for 12 months before making a political donation. The Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy also urged the Government to immediately ban political donations made through cryptocurrency until firm rules can be developed.
It warned that cryptocurrency donations pose an “unnecessary and unacceptably high risk to the integrity of the political finance system”. They also said successful foreign financial influence effort can no longer be ruled out, adding: “The perception of foreign money shaping politics is increasingly corrosive. Public trust is already low; it would not take too much to fracture.”
Research shows Reform is backed by wealthy investors, climate sceptics and former Tory donors. Mr Harborne, who has previously donated large sums to the Brexit Party and the Conservatives under Boris Johnson’s leadership, handed a further £3million to Reform in November.
At the end of last year, Mr Farage insisted Mr Harborne, an investor and aviation entrepreneur who lives in Thailand, wanted “nothing in return” for his £9m donation to Reform. Around 40% of Reform’s donations in 2024 came from those who have questioned climate change or have investments in fossil fuels, according to an analysis by the New York Times last year.
Reform landed more than £5.4million in donations during the final three months of last year, according to data published by the Electoral Commission. The Conservatives received more than £2.4m, Labour took more than £1.9million and the Liberal Democrats more than £1.3m over the same period.
Reform and the Tories both accepted £200,000 from construction equipment firm JCB, while Labour received more than £55,000 from Labour Together, the think tank previously run by former Downing Street chief of staff Morgan McSweeney.
::: YouGov polled 2,125 adults in the UK for the TUC on March 9 and 10.
