Public backlash grows over Musk’s reported $100m pledge to Reform UK
A significant majority of the British public believes that foreign nationals who are not registered to vote in the UK should not be allowed to donate to British political parties, a new YouGov poll has revealed.
What you need to know
● Survey finds 70% of UK public opposes foreign donations.
● Elon Musk’s potential donation to Reform UK sparks political controversy.
● MPs demand urgent reforms to restrict foreign influence in party funding.
T he survey, conducted on 4 February 2025 with 4,505 respondents, found that 70% oppose such donations, while only 8% support them. Meanwhile, 21% remain undecided.
The poll comes amid reports that billionaire Elon Musk has expressed interest in donating millions of pounds to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK. The move has sparked debate over the influence of foreign wealth in British politics, with critics arguing that it undermines national democracy.
MPs across the political spectrum have called for urgent reforms to party financing laws to prevent non-UK citizens from making political donations.
Farage has embraced Musk’s potential involvement, particularly for its appeal to young voters. “The shades, the bomber jacket, the whole vibe. Elon makes us cool – Elon is a huge help to us with the young generation, and that will be the case going on, and frankly that’s only just starting,” he told the Daily Telegraph in January.
In the interview, Farage also confirmed discussions about the potential $100m donation from Musk at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort and stressed that winning the youth vote is crucial for Reform UK’s electoral success: “Reform only wins the next election if it gets the youth vote. The youth vote is the key.”
Despite growing public opposition, Farage remains confident: “Elon makes the whole task much, much easier.”
With overwhelming public opposition to foreign donations, pressure is mounting on the government to take action before the next general election.
Sources:
▪ This piece was first published in Europeans TODAY on 6 February 2025.
▪ Cover: AI-generated image/Grok. (Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.)
