Five pressing questions for Reform UK about its finances

Questions swirl about origins of gifts, loans and donations as even party supporters wonder if it can weather the storm

Why is Farage quitting as an MP, only to stand again?

Scrutiny is mounting on Reform UK’s finances.

On Tuesday, amid an investigation by parliamentary standards into an undisclosed £5m gift, Nigel Farage announced he would resign and trigger a byelection in his constituency of Clacton-on-Sea.

His statement came an hour after a deadline to respond to the Guardian’s latest investigation, which revealed that the £5m gift had been reported by bankers to the National Crime Agency (NCA) over money laundering concerns.

The Guardian has also revealed he was not alone : transactions worth more than £1m involving other senior figures at Reform had also caused bankers to report their concerns to the NCA via Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs). These are not the same as a crime report. They are an invitation for the NCA to examine a transaction and decide whether it merits further investigation.

The disclosures have precipitated Reform’s biggest crisis and led even party supporters to question their leader’s judgment.

Here are some of the most pressing questions the party must now answer on the revelations and their consequences.