By Tony Diver, US Editor | The Telegraph
Elon Musk has backed Reform UK and opened discussions with Nigel Farage about making a major donation to the party to defeat both Labour and the Conservatives.
Mr Farage met the tech billionaire at Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump’s Florida club, on Monday and “the issue of money was discussed” amid speculation that he could donate as much as $100 million (£78 million).
Mr Farage, the Reform leader, said Mr Musk “left us in no doubt that he is right behind us” and launched “ongoing negotiations” about a financial contribution.
It is the first time that either Mr Farage or Mr Musk has acknowledged rumours that the latter is considering a multi-million pound donation, which could be the largest in British political history.
The SpaceX and Tesla entrepreneur is a vocal critic of the Labour Government and has accused Sir Keir Starmer of eroding freedom of speech by running a “tyrannical police state”.
Mr Farage shared a photograph of the two on Tuesday with the caption: “Britain needs Reform.” Mr Musk replied: “Absolutely.”
The Reform leader was joined by Nick Candy, a London property magnate and former Conservative donor who defected to Reform last week, becoming the party’s treasurer and promising to bring in “tens of millions of pounds”.
Mr Farage wrote that he hoped to learn from Mr Trump’s election victory and had discussed the Republican “ground game” in Pennsylvania, where Mr Musk controversially gave cash handouts to registered voters.
He said: “I have come home with copious notes of how they increased the turnout, voter registration and so much more, and all of this I intend to implement as part of the professionalisation of our party.
“It is also heartening to listen to Elon speak about UK politics with such deep care. He regards the mother country of the English-speaking world as being in very deep trouble.
“Inevitably, following such intense media speculation, the issue of money was discussed and there will be ongoing negotiations on that score.”
Mr Musk has significant concerns about the UK’s Online Safety Act, which requires social media companies including X – which he owns – to regulate their content.
Scrapping or amending the legislation may become a key request of Mr Trump when he enters trade negotiations with Britain next year.
Mr Trump’s team has warned that the UK must choose between a closer trade relationship with either the US or the EU, suggesting that talks could end with tariffs of up to 20 per cent on UK exports if the incoming president is not placated.
Mr Farage said that, during his visit to Mar-a-Lago, several of Mr Trump’s allies had asked him about Sir Keir’s decision to sign away the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, which some Republicans think will threaten the Diego Garcia airbase.
“I was able to assure them that the Chagos Islands’ surrender was not only wholly unnecessary but represented a bad deal for the United Kingdom, America, the free world and not least the Chagossian people,” he said. “I promise the Labour Government there is trouble ahead on this issue.”
In a sign of Mr Farage’s growing familiarity with the new Trump administration, he also met JD Vance, the vice president-elect.
Mr Vance has spoken to Kemi Badenoch, the Tory leader, and David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, since the US election last month, but no party leader other than Mr Farage has met Mr Musk.
In a statement, Mr Farage said: “I had a great meeting with vice-president elect JD Vance yesterday. He is a friend of mine and I have known him for 14 years – Kemi Badenoch has known him for 14 days.
“I have always said I will help this Government with contacts. It isn’t just President Trump and the incoming vice-president, but I have known large numbers of the cabinet for many years.
“I will always do what is in the national interest, and renewing strong our ties with America after four years of Joe Biden can only be a good thing for our country.”
On her recent trip to Washington, Mrs Badenoch said she was “excited about Doge”, an efficiency project Mr Musk will lead next year, describing its work as “absolutely brilliant”. But he has declined to return her warm words, preferring to criticise Sir Keir and back Mr Farage.
During riots across the UK in August, he posted online that “civil war is inevitable”, drawing criticism from a Downing Street spokesman, who said there was “no justification for comments like that”.
After Labour imposed inheritance tax on British farmers, he claimed the UK was “going full Stalin”. He also supported a petition for a new general election last month, writing online: “The people of Britain have had enough of a tyrannical police state.”
As a US citizen, Mr Musk cannot legally donate to a UK political party, but he could give Reform money via the British branch of X.
A contribution of £78 million would easily eclipse the biggest single party donation in British history – a £10 million gift by Lord Sainsbury to the Conservative Party in 2023. It would also deal a major blow to both Labour and the Conservatives, who are challenging Reform in dozens of local council elections in May.
Lord Mandelson, the Labour peer in contention to be the UK’s next ambassador to the US, has said the Government must use Mr Farage and other Trump allies as a “bridge” to Mr Musk, and that it would be “unwise” to ignore him.
Discussion about this post