Nigel Farage has revealed his home was targeted in a firebombing attack last year, and that he has received a personal gift of around £5 million for his security from a Reform UK mega donor.
The Reform UK leader faced criticism for failing to declare the seven-figure sum he was given by Thailand-based cryptocurrency investor Christopher Harborne in 2024.
Mr Farage said a lit device was shoved through his letterbox in early 2025 in an “outright arson attempt” when he was not in.
He found the damage when he returned home and “luckily it had burned itself out in the porch”.
Police investigated but have not identified any suspects.
For the first time, Nigel Farage has revealed his home was targeted in an arson attack in 2025.
— Reform UK (@reformparty_uk) April 29, 2026
Politicians must be able to engage with the public without fear of violence.
We are calling for a broader discussion on protecting all MPs in public office. pic.twitter.com/fWbUCV8E7s
“There are huge dangers in this job,” Mr Farage told The Telegraph while campaigning for the May 7 local elections.
“I’m acutely aware of the love for me, but equally the levels of antipathy that exist.”
He said he was speaking about the attack for the first time because he had been concerned that doing so earlier would force him to boost his safety measures further.
Other incidents that went unreported included “pints of beer being thrown over me” and having to “write off a car once because it was attacked by protesters when I was in it”.
The Clacton MP said: “I would rather not be discussing any of this but I am having to because someone has got hold of material about my private finances, which is outrageous, and which I believe was illegally obtained.”
British businessman Mr Harborne gave Mr Farage a sum in the region of £5 million to fund his security in 2024, before he re-entered politics.
“This money was given to me so that I would be safe and secure for the rest of my life,” Mr Farage told the newspaper.
“I have tried and failed in the past to get security funded by the Home Office and I don’t think the state will ever help me.
“I’m very much on my own and will be for the rest of my life, and I have to face up to that grim reality.
“Christopher is an ardent supporter who is deeply concerned for my safety.”
The party’s war chest was bolstered by a £9 million donation from Mr Harborne last August – the biggest single donation in history to a political party from a living person – and he has given millions more since and previously.
Mr Harborne’s separate £5 million gift for Mr Farage was not subject to tax or declared to the parliamentary authorities as it did not count as a political donation, according to The Telegraph.
Mr Farage said it followed his unsuccessful attempt to secure Home Office-funded security in 2019 and after Mr Harborne became concerned about his level of protection when a milkshake was thrown at him.
He declared in May 2024 that he did not intend to stand in the general election.
The Guardian reported that he received the gift from the billionaire weeks before announcing he would run for Clacton-on-Sea, and was therefore not required to declare it to the electoral commission.
But Reform disputed this account, saying Mr Farage announced he would not stand as an MP after receiving the money, then later changed his mind.
The Guardian also said it had approached Reform and Mr Harborne about the gift, but not received a response by the time The Telegraph published its interview with Mr Farage on Wednesday.
The party declined to say which of Mr Farage’s homes was targeted, for security reasons.
Labour Party chairwoman Anna Turley said: “Nigel Farage appears to have broken the rules again by failing to declare this cash from his billionaire backer.
“Reform have repeatedly tried to dodge scrutiny over their deputy leader Richard Tice’s tax scandal. It’s simply not good enough for Reform to gloss over these egregious acts and further erode public trust in politics.
“It’s just the latest alarming example of Farage and his MPs believing there is one rule for them and another for everyone else.”
