Reform UK published “news-making, cor blimey, take-a-look-at-this photos” of a meeting this week between Elon Musk and Nigel Farage at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago mansion, said the BBC’s political editor Chris Mason.
But this is about more than just photos: it is “the most clear-cut proof yet of the richest man in the world’s desire to get involved in – meddle in, as some see it – British politics”.
It has only added to the speculation that Musk, “the world’s disruptor-in-chief”, intends to donate up to $100 million (£78 million) to the party led by “the UK’s political disruptor-in-chief”, Farage.
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For the boss of X and Tesla, British politics seems to have become a bit of a “side hustle”, said Matthew D’Ancona in London’s The Standard. Musk has “endorsed Reform in the most theatrical fashion, and clearly intends to subsidise its campaign of nationalist disruption”. If the $100 million donation does materialise, it would be the largest ever donation in British political history, and have “transformative consequences for Reform’s prospects”.
But Reform is hardly a well-oiled machine. Even if such a donation is made, it’s not clear what impact it would have on a party that Farage “concedes is still lacking in organisation and election-winning knowhow”, said The Guardian.
Yet, the image of Farage standing beside Musk, who poured $250 million (£200 million) of his fortune into helping Trump win a second term in the White House, sums up the current state of UK politics. This is “the second age of Farage as a domestic tribute act to Trump – one in which, Farage hopes, he also ends up with an election win”.
“Pundits are right to be wary of all rich actors, foreign and domestic, meddling in politics,” said Freddy Gray in The Spectator.
Still, Reform’s rise in the polls isn’t just because Musk is behind them: it’s because voters are fed up with both Labour and the Conservatives. People are drawn to Farage and others who talk about the “uniparty” running Britain, especially on hot-button issues like immigration. Perhaps what British voters want is “more disruption, not less”.
What next?
The Mar-a-Lago talks have “highlighted the urgent need to reform the UK’s archaic rules on how political parties are funded”, said Andrew Grice on The Independent.
Musk could legally give Reform money through X or Tesla as they are UK-registered, but the Electoral Commission has reportedly urged the government to strengthen the rules around political donations to deter foreign interference. The “Musk-Farage link-up” could therefore be Keir Starmer’s “golden opportunity to clean up the dark money flowing into British politics”.
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