Rupert Lowe, leader of the hard-right party Restore Britain, revealed on Tuesday that he declined a significant financial offer from tech billionaire Elon Musk.
Lowe stated that Musk offered the party "as much money as we wanted" during a private fundraising event in Mayfair in May. However, Lowe ultimately rejected the donation, citing "optics" and the illegality of accepting foreign funding under UK electoral law. Any donation over £500 from an impermissible source, such as a foreign national, must be declared and returned within 30 days, or it can lead to fines and criminal investigations for accepting the funds.
Despite the rejection of the direct financial offer, Lowe acknowledged Musk's "moral support and his support on social media is incredibly powerful," adding that this type of backing is not tangible and therefore does not require disclosure.
Musk has been an outspoken supporter of Lowe's party, which was established in February after Lowe's suspension from Reform UK. Musk has frequently endorsed Lowe's posts on X, formerly Twitter, with messages such as "It will win. It must win. To save Britain."
This revelation comes as Lowe's political rivals, Reform UK, led by Nigel Farage, are reportedly under investigation by the Metropolitan Police. The investigation follows an undercover reporting sting broadcast by Channel 4. Reform UK recently announced substantial donations, totaling £72 million, from two cryptocurrency billionaires: £36 million from Ben Delo, co-founder of BitMEX, and another £36 million from Thai-British billionaire Christopher Harborne. These donations are reported to be the largest in British political history and bring Reform UK's total raised this year to nearly £90 million. The party intends to use these funds to enhance its infrastructure, including hiring campaign managers and strategists, and establishing an "attack unit" to target rivals.
Harborne, who has previously donated £15 million to Reform UK, is also facing scrutiny from the parliamentary commissioner for standards regarding a £5 million personal gift to Farage that may not have been declared. Harborne stated his donations are not in expectation of favors but rather a commitment to seeing Britain thrive. Farage expressed gratitude for the donations, asserting they would enable Reform UK to compete on a "level playing field" in the next general election. Delo stated his donation was to ensure a "fair fight" against the "entrenched advantages" of other parties. Delo announced his return to the UK earlier this year after Labour proposed capping donations from British citizens living abroad.