Farage by-election bid risks backfiring as main parties will not contest vote

Helen Corbett, Press Association Political Correspondent

Nigel Farage’s attempt to fight a “people versus the establishment” by-election risks falling flat, with the major parties saying they will not contest the vote he has triggered.

The Reform UK leader said he would quit as an MP on Tuesday as he came under further scrutiny over his finances, saying that the voters in Clacton “should be the judges of my actions”.

Mr Farage said: “This will be a people versus the establishment by-election. 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.”

But Labour, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats, the Green Party and Rupert Lowe’s Restore Britain have all said they will not stand candidates and accused Mr Farage of seeking to distract from the probes he faces, meaning his only confirmed challenger so far is the satirical candidate Count Binface.

Mr Farage is being investigated by the parliamentary standards commissioner over a £5 million gift from cryptocurrency tycoon Christopher Harborne, which he said was needed to fund the security he required as a result of multiple threats against him.

The Reformer leader also appeared to confirm he was facing another probe over support provided by convicted fraudster George Cottrell after a Sunday Times investigation.

Long-term ally Mr Cottrell reportedly recruited and paid three staff to work on Mr Farage’s social media before the general election, and has continued to allow him to use a five-storey Georgian property he rented near Buckingham Palace.

New MPs are required to register any gifts worth more than £300 they received in the previous 12 months, except where the gift “could not be reasonably thought by others” to relate to their political activities.

Parliamentary Standards Commissioner Daniel Greenberg’s investigation is suspended after Mr Farage’s resignation, but will resume if he returns to Parliament.

If he is found to have breached the rules and is suspended for more than 10 sitting days, it could trigger a recall petition – potentially leading to another Clacton by-election.

The Clacton MP maintains he has done nothing wrong and has accused Westminster opponents of using sleaze investigations as a “political tool” and the media of “haranguing” his family.

But other parties have said the investigations into his finances must run their course, with Kemi Badenoch saying her party would not take part in a “fake by-election that Farage is causing to distract people from what is happening”.

The people of Clacton need “all the facts” before they can decide whether they want to keep him as their MP, Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey said as he urged the Government to block Mr Farage’s resignation.

The Reform UK chief said he had offered for Reform UK to pay the cost of the vote after criticism that it was a waste of taxpayer money.

But the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government poured cold water on the idea.

An MHCLG spokesperson said: “To maintain the independence and impartiality of the electoral process, the law is clear that the cost of running elections must be met from public funds, and not by candidates or political parties.

“Individuals or groups can, of course, make voluntary donations to the Consolidated Fund in the normal way, but these are not ring-fenced to pay for specific costs or events.”

A report in the Guardian that bankers filed a suspicious activity report (SAR) with the National Crime Agency in May 2024 over concerns the gift from Mr Harborne could be laundered money has raised further questions.

Reform UK did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but Mr Farage told the newspaper he did not know about the SAR and said he had no reason to doubt the ultimate source of the money.

Deputy Reform UK leader Richard Tice, meanwhile, accused the NCA of leaking his and Mr Farage’s information, telling The Telegraph he had written to the agency demanding an inquiry.

An NCA spokesperson said: “The NCA does not confirm or deny the receipt of suspicious activity reports (SARs), nor comment on how any SAR is used.

“SARs are confidential and breaching that confidentiality risks committing a tipping off offence under the Proceeds of Crime Act.”