Nigel Farage, Brexit’s snake-oil salesman, is at it again. The Reform UK leader is under investigation over whether he broke parliamentary rules by failing to disclose a £5m gift from a crypto billionaire shortly before announcing he would stand for parliament. He now faces questions over claims that George Cottrell, a Montenegro-based convicted criminal and longtime associate, helped fund his security and social media operation before the 2024 general election. MPs are required to declare potentially relevant gifts or donations received in the 12 months before entering parliament. Purely personal gifts do not need to be registered.

Rather than wait for the exoneration he insists is inevitable, Mr Farage says he will resign as MP for Clacton and stand again. He hopes to pull in the crowds like a carnival barker. His argument is a con: that the “establishment” should not judge him over million-pound gifts; only the voters should. But a byelection can........

© The Guardian