Angela Rayner has signalled that Labour could tighten the rules on political donations, after two crypto billionaires living abroad gave Reform UK a combined £72million, the largest single donation in British political history. Thailand-based Christopher Harborne and Hong Kong-based Ben Delo each gave £36million to Nigel Farage's party on the same day, with Farage saying the money was paid upfront deliberately to get ahead of any Labour attempt to cap such donations. Rayner said the funding of political parties was a "live issue" and argued that wealthy individuals who do not live in or pay tax in the UK should not be able to "buy their way" into British democracy. Legislation currently before Parliament would cap foreign donations at £100,000, but both donors are registered UK voters, making their gifts legal.

The combined £72million donation is equivalent to roughly three-quarters of the total spent by all parties at the 2024 general election. Reform UK insists neither donor will receive a knighthood, peerage or government contract in return, with Harborne describing his gift as a "philanthropic" contribution and Delo, who was pardoned by Donald Trump over a US banking law conviction, saying his aim was to create a "level playing field" for the party. Harborne separately gave Farage £5million personally, a gift he failed to declare, triggering an investigation by the Parliamentary Standards Commissioner. Prime Minister Andy Burnham has so far declined to back a backbench push to extend donation caps to UK-based gifts, amid resistance from trade unions that fund Labour.