Police investigate payments to Reform UK first revealed by The Guardian

Scotland Yard is investigating two £250,000 donations to Reform UK from Britain Means Business, a company controlled by the party's deputy leader Richard Tice, before the 2024 election. The investigation follows a Guardian report that Fiona Cottrell transferred £1m to the company shortly before the donations, with half going to the party, and that her son, convicted fraudster George Cottrell, has close ties to Nigel Farage. Direct donations from Fiona Cottrell to Reform UK are also under scrutiny, while Tice has denied knowledge of the probe and accused the Met of a politically motivated smear campaign.