Reform councillors told to describe donations inquiry as establishment stitch-up

Police are investigating donations worth £500,000 made to Nigel Farage’s party by the mother the crypto gambler and convicted fraudster George Cottrell. Photograph: Joe Giddens/PA View image in fullscreen Police are investigating donations worth £500,000 made to Nigel Farage’s party by the mother the crypto gambler and convicted fraudster George Cottrell. Photograph: Joe Giddens/PA Reform councillors told to describe donations inquiry as establishment stitch-up ‘Daily routine of hit jobs and smears will not deter us from winning next general election,’ party briefing notes say Reform UK has instructed its councillors to describe a police investigation into donations from the mother of George Cottrell as an establishment stitch-up, as polling showed the party’s popularity plummeting. Internal briefing documents circulated to the party’s councillors included instructions to respond to questions about a Metropolitan police investigation into party donations with: “It is now clear that the establishment will try anything to stop us”, the Times revealed on Thursday . Local government representatives were also instructed to respond to questions with: “The British people are tired of the establishment media doing anything they can to stop Reform. A daily routine of hit jobs and smears will not deter us from winning the next general election and fixing broken Britain.” Police are investigating donations worth £500,000 made to Reform UK by Fiona Cottrell, the mother of the crypto-gambler and convicted fraudster “Posh George”, who is a close friend of Farage. How to Launder Money But Not Like Me, by George Cottrell (as imagined by John Crace) Read more The Guardian revealed in April that the Reform UK leader had received a £5m gift from the crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne before the last election, which is currently subject to standards inquiry . The Conservatives have also asked HMRC to investigate whether Farage should have paid tax on the £5m gift. Farage is also subject to another inquiry over allegations that he breached parliamentary rules by being financially supported by Cottrell. View image in fullscreen George Cottrell beside Farage on the campaign trail in 2024, when the Reform leader was doused in milkshake. Photograph: James Manning/PA It comes as new polling by YouGov shows that Nigel Farage’s popularity has plummeted, falling to the joint lowest level in the decade they have been tracked by the pollster. Only 22% of people have a positive view of Farage, while 68% see him in a negative light – a net favourability rating of -46. YouGov said the figure was on a par with figures recorded by Boris Johnson after the first “partygate” revelations had broken (-42 in early December 2021) and Keir Starmer just before his resignation (-45). On -11%, the Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, is also enjoying popularity levels higher than those of any Conservative leader for more than five years, according to the survey. It has Burnham on +3%. Sep