Lee Anderson struggled to explain Reform UK’s response to its latest funding controversy during an awkward live television interview that became even more chaotic moments after it ended.
The Reform chairman appeared on Good Morning Britain following an undercover investigation into allegations that a US company paid £32,500 for three opinion polls commissioned with the involvement of senior party figures.
Anderson insisted Reform had received legal advice that no law had been broken and said the party had launched a full internal investigation.
There was just one problem. When presenters Kate Garraway and Ranvir Singh asked who was leading it, Anderson could not tell them.
Minutes after the interview finished, Reform announced that its head of policy James Orr and Nigel Farage’s senior aide Dan Jukes had stepped down.
The timing left Anderson looking as though he had arrived for the interview without being told what his own party was about to do.
Anderson says investigation has started, then backtracks
Anderson began by saying Reform had been advised by a KC that it had broken no laws.
He added:
“We think it’s just right and proper that we do launch a full internal investigation into what’s happened, into what’s been breaking in the news over the past 12 hours or so.”
He said he was “fairly sure” that the result would eventually be reported to the public and the media.
Garraway then asked the obvious question: who was conducting the investigation?
Anderson initially said there would be “people within Reform” helping with it. When pressed to identify the person in charge, he said it was still “early doors” and suggested further details might emerge during the day.
Garraway asked him directly whether he personally knew who would lead the investigation.
Anderson replied:
“That decision has not been made at this moment.”
That created an immediate problem because Anderson had already said the investigation had begun.
When asked how it could have started without anybody being appointed to lead it, he protested:
“No, no, no. You’re quite wrong, Kate. What we’ve done as a party, we’ve agreed to launch our investigation today. That’s as simple as that.”
Garraway reminded him that he had said only moments earlier that it was already under way.
Anderson then pointed out that it was early in the morning and said he had been awake since 5.30am.
“We can’t start investigating,” he said. “What we’ve done, to be open and honest with you, we are going to launch a full investigation and that will start today.”
It was not the clearest explanation of an inquiry intended to demonstrate the party’s commitment to transparency.
Reform announcement comes moments after interview
Anderson was also asked whether Orr and Jukes would continue carrying out their duties while the investigation took place.
He declined to provide an answer.
“It wouldn’t be fair to comment at this moment in time,” he said. “I’m not breaking any news right now.”
He was right about that, although only because the news arrived almost immediately after he left the interview.
Good Morning Britain interrupted its programme to report that Orr and Jukes had stepped down from their positions pending the outcome of Reform’s investigation.
The programme’s reporter at Reform’s Birmingham conference said he had been standing beside Anderson during the interview and that the announcement was made as soon as the party chairman came off air.
The presenter said Anderson had appeared “incredibly blindsided” by the development.
Reform subsequently confirmed that both men had left their roles while the allegations were examined.
A party spokesperson said:
“Reform UK has launched an investigation following the broadcast of a Channel 4 News programme.
“Both individuals involved have stepped down from their respective positions pending the outcome of the investigation.
“The party believes it is important that the investigation is allowed to proceed independently and without prejudice.”
What the undercover investigation alleged
The controversy began with an undercover investigation conducted by Verbatim and verified and broadcast by Channel 4 News.
Reporters posed as the British-based son of a wealthy American businessman and the businessman himself. They secretly recorded discussions with senior Reform figures over several months.
The investigation alleged that Orr and Jukes arranged for a US company connected to the fictitious donor to pay for three polls costing a total of £32,500.
The polls were conducted by JL Partners and their findings later received prominent coverage in national newspapers. The Times said it had not been told about Reform’s alleged involvement in commissioning and arranging payment for one of them. The Telegraph said it believed it had been misled and suspended the relevant articles while the British Polling Council reviewed the matter.
The undercover footage also allegedly captured discussions about a proposed £500,000 donation from the American father.
According to the investigation, Jukes suggested the father could transfer the money to his UK-resident son, who could then donate it in his own name. The supposed donors were undercover journalists and the proposed £500,000 donation was never made.
Footage showed Farage celebrating the effect of the polling during a meeting with the undercover team. Referring to one result, he said: “It worked. Boom.”
Reform denies all wrongdoing. Farage has described the operation as entrapment, while the party said it had been targeted by a “hoax” carried out by climate campaigners posing as donors.
Deputy leader Richard Tice said no money had been received by Reform and denied that the party had received a benefit in kind.
What the donation rules say
Political parties are only allowed to accept donations from permissible sources. These include individuals registered to vote in the UK and companies that are registered and carrying on business here.
The Electoral Commission said it was considering the available information and was in contact with the Metropolitan Police. It also clarified that it does not approve the donor vetting procedures used by individual parties.
Labour and the Liberal Democrats have referred the allegations to the police. The Metropolitan Police said it was aware of the reports and would assess any information supplied to it.
No finding has been made that Reform, Farage, Orr or Jukes committed a criminal offence.
Anderson and Tice offer different answers
After his difficult Good Morning Britain appearance, Anderson adopted a considerably firmer position during an interview with Sky News.
He said Orr and Jukes had been told to step down and claimed there was “no chance” of them returning.
“The pair concerned have gone,” he said. “We’re a serious party and sometimes in politics you have to make tough decisions.”
Tice later contradicted that position during an interview with BBC Radio 4.
Asked whether the two men could return, he said:
“Let’s wait and see what the investigation says.”
Addressing Anderson’s declaration, Tice added:
“It’s not actually, in the nicest possible way, for any individual to make that determination until the investigation finishes.”
Reform therefore ended the morning with no publicly identified leader for its inquiry, two senior figures stepping down and two of its most prominent politicians giving different answers about whether they might return.
The party had hoped the opening of its annual conference would allow it to set out its plans for government. Instead, its first morning was dominated by questions about funding, transparency and whether its chairman knew what was happening inside his own organisation.
One response to “Lee Anderson suffers car-crash interview trying to defend Reform over funding scandal”
I hope the sensible ( if any are) reform voter will now see them for what they are.
So that just leaves the hard core racists voting for them. And thank god they are a minority
Joe Connor is a UK-based reporter specialising in politics, public policy, and national affairs. He has previously contributed to publications including The London Economic (JOE Media Group) and Spotted News.
At The Daily Britain, he covers Westminster politics, elections, and breaking political developments, alongside in-depth analysis of policy decisions and their real-world impact.
I hope the sensible ( if any are) reform voter will now see them for what they are.
So that just leaves the hard core racists voting for them. And thank god they are a minority
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