Nigel Farage speaking at a press conference in 2025 (Thomas Krych/Alamy)
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Nigel Farage has announced that he is resigning as the Reform MP for Clacton and will fight the by-election that follows.
Speaking on Tuesday afternoon, Farage said the contest would be a “people versus the establishment by-election” that would take place “in short order”.
“It’s a chance to stick two fingers up to the entire establishment, to frankly tell them where to go, and that is why I will be putting my name forward to stand in this by-election. I will fight to win. I will fight to continue the political revolution that Reform UK has started,” the Reform leader declared.
Farage added that the “people of Clacton” would then be “the judges” of his actions, amid increasing pressure on him in recent weeks due to a series of reports about his financial backing before he became an MP.
Over the weekend, The Sunday Times revealed that Farage had failed to declare funding from George Cottrell, a convicted felon involved in crypto gambling.
The money from Cottrell, who has long been close to Farage, went towards the Reform UK leader’s operation, including for staffing, security and housing, according to the Sunday Times.
“I have done nothing wrong,” Farage said today in relation to the money he has received, asking: “Do we want leaders who know how to make money?”
He went on to stress that he is often physically and verbally attacked, so will “need security for the rest of my life”. He added: “You only know about a fraction of the number of times I’ve been assaulted.”
Farage argued in the statement today that “the establishment have now decided that they can’t beat us fairly, so they’ve chosen to use foul means”.
“Let me be absolutely clear, after the furore and the media pile-on – well, not just the media, the other political parties too – let me be absolutely clear: I have done nothing wrong. I have not broken the law in any way at all. I have not misused public money,” he said.
Farage is also being investigated by the parliamentary standards watchdog over receiving £5m from crypto-billionaire Christopher Harborne weeks before announcing his intention to run in the 2024 general election, which he did not declare once he became an MP.
Parliamentary standards commissioner Daniel Greenberg is expected to publish his findings on the Harborne gift before the end of next week.
If Farage is found to have seriously breached the code of conduct, consequences could include suspension from the Commons and a recall petition leading to a potential by-election.
This is a developing story…
