Mr Farage resigns to fight by-election

In a dramatic statement that sent shock waves through Westminster on Tuesday, the Reform UK leader said that he was standing down in his Clacton constituency and would run in the ensuing contest after coming under scrutiny over undeclared donations.

Mr Farage is being investigated by parliamentary authorities over allegations that he did not correctly report a £5m gift from Christopher Harborne, a cryptocurrency billionaire, before the 2024 general election.

He is also facing a second investigation over undeclared donations from George Cottrell, one of his closest associates who was convicted of fraud in the US.

Speaking from Reform’s headquarters in Westminster, Mr Farage claimed that the sleaze investigation was being used as a political tool against him, and pledged that voters in Clacton would be the judge of his actions in a “people versus the establishment by-election”.

Mr Farage accused the media of harassing his family, saying he had “never been angrier in my life”. 

He claimed that the money he received from Mr Harborne was being used to tackle the daily threats against him, calling himself the “most physically and verbally attacked public figure of modern times”.

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.”

However, the parliamentary investigation is expected to continue regardless of Mr Farage’s actions.

[Source: Daily Telegraph]