U.K.’s Nigel Farage said he “wasn’t listening” during donation scandal conversation filmed covertly

September 6, 2026 / 2:04 AM EDT / CBS News

Nigel Farage, the firebrand leader of the U.K.'s Reform party, downplayed his involvement in a donation scandal following an undercover investigation where a journalist posed as a wealthy American's son who wanted to donate to the party.

Farage told CBS News' international partner BBC News on Saturday he "frankly wasn't listening" during a conversation where he was filmed alongside senior aides, who have since stepped down, appearing to discuss how to arrange donations.

British law regards a permissible donor to a U.K. political party as either a U.K.-registered voter or a company. In the scenario that unfolds in the undercover investigation, the son is a permissible donor, and the father is not.

In an interview with the BBC, Farage said he was in the middle of campaigning at the time and not aware of all the details from the supposed would-be donor.

"The money could come from all over the world, you know. Income could have came from all over the world into a family office based in London. I know electoral law, I know donation law better than anybody," he told the BBC.

The leader of the Reform party…

Original source: https://www.cbsnews.com/entertainment/