Reform’s general election manifesto last year promised measures to help people into jobs, and it’s certainly done that for one man – leader Nigel Farage, who, 15 months after finally making it into Parliament, has a whopping 12 second jobs!
The lesser-spotted Clacton MP’s earnings from side-hustles now stands at just under £1.2 million since the last general election, with the most lucrative of the roles being a presenter at GB News (bringing in £511,00), a brand ambassador for gold dealer Direct Bullion (£281,000) and doing videos for celebrity messaging service Cameo (£171,00). In comparison his earnings for what some may have presumed was a full-time job – as a Member of Parliament – brought in relative pocket money of £93,904. The figures have just been recorded in Farage’s entry in the Commons Register of Members’ Financial Interests.
The outside earnings are easily the most of any MP of any party in the Commons, and is more than twice as much as the next highest earner, former prime minister Rishi Sunak, who has declared £587,000 since the election.
In addition, the Daily Mirror has pointed out some doubts over whether Farage declared all of his income on time. A £43,491 payment from GB News on July 31 wasn’t registered until October 3, and three payments totalling £26,00 from Imperial Independent Media – which sounds like a nice local newspaper firm, but is in actual fact a US-based global consultancy – on May 8, May 19, and June 10, weren’t registered until October 3.
In addition, he is understood to have still not declared his stake in All Perspectives, the parent company of GB News, which he has received nearly 500,000 shares from through his company Thorn in the Side. MPs must register any shareholdings above £70,000, but the code of conduct states that they should also record “any relevant financial interest or material benefit”, rules under which his GB News shares are likely to fall.
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Still, at least Clacton residents, who have seen little of their Member of Parliament since sending him to the Commons, know what he has been up to. Counting his money (if his 12 side jobs leave time for it)!
Meanwhile, Farage’s deputy leader of Reform, Richard Tice, has belatedly updated his entry in the Commons Register of Members’ Financial Interests to disclose an interesting freebie from Lubov Chernukhin, the Soviet-born businesswoman whose previous generosity to the Conservative Party made her the largest female political donor in British history.
Tice has recorded accepting a £1,400 trip to France to “discuss gas power in the UK” from Lubov from August 4-6 this year. His update, made on September 23 – and thus falling outside the 28-day registration limit – was comprised of £400 for meals and £1,000 on accommodation, with no further details given of the trip.
Lubov is an interesting holiday companion for Tice, having previously dispensed her cash with largesse to the Tories – a total of £2.4 million over the years. The last of these donations, though, was to Priti Patel in August 2024, with nothing since Kemi Badenoch became leader a year ago.
Perhaps Tice and Lubov found common ground over their extensive property interests, though Lubov has been keener to play up her philanthropic endeavours in recent years – endeavours which earned her the title of Knight (Cavaliere) of the Order of Saint Agatha, a state order of the Republic of San Marino, in 2022.
She has yet to make any donations to Reform itself, though the under-fire Nick Candy would no doubt welcome any given his lacklustre showing so far as Reform’s treasurer and the man officially tasked with shaking the party’s begging bowl.
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