Reform UK mayoral candidate faces funding probe questions

Reform UK's candidate for London Mayor, Laila Cunningham, has responded to a police investigation into the party's funding, stating that money for her mayoral campaign is held in a separate and traceable account. The party faces scrutiny over allegations that it received foreign funding for three opinion polls earlier this year, which cost £32,500.

Funding Allegations and Investigation

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The allegations, reported by Channel 4 News, suggest that Reform UK accepted funds from a "US firm" for the polls. Under electoral law, foreign companies are prohibited from providing financial support to UK political parties, including for research and studies. Scotland Yard has been called upon by Labour, the Liberal Democrats, and the Green Party to investigate these claims.

When questioned about the scandal and its implications for public trust in Reform UK's funding sources, Ms Cunningham stated, "We have a separate campaign to the national campaign. But we recognise that there is an investigation, so I can't really comment on it. All our funding for the London mayoral campaign is actually a different funding account to the national, it's pretty traceable."

Mayoral Race Dynamics

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Ms Cunningham's comments come as the London mayoral race intensifies. A recent poll conducted by The Standard indicates Reform UK holds 20% support, placing them behind Labour, which has 33% support. Conservative MP James Cleverly recently resigned from his shadow cabinet position to pursue the Conservative candidacy for the London Mayor role.

Mr Cleverly had previously suggested that the contest for Mayor of London was primarily between Conservative and Labour candidates, dismissing Reform UK's chances. Ms Cunningham countered these remarks, suggesting Mr Cleverly's perspective was shaped by his experience within the "establishment" and that Reform UK had made significant progress in building its campaign machinery in London over the past year.

She told The Standard, "I think the Tories have tried and failed many times to win the mayorship. It's interesting because your recent poll showed that we went from 13 per cent to 20 per cent. We frog leaped the Tories. I was the only Reform person in London last year. There was no one else. So in a year we've built this machinery."

Leadership Changes Amidst Investigation

The party conference in Birmingham was affected by the news of the funding allegations. Two senior officials, Dan Jukes, head of press, and James Orr, head of policy, have stepped down from their roles pending the outcome of an internal party investigation into the broadcast concerning the alleged breach of donation rules.