Dwyfor Meirionnydd MP Liz Saville Roberts is calling for a formal investigation from the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards into Reform leader Nigel Farage.

Mrs Saville Roberts called for the investigation on Monday, 6 July, on the basis Farage may have breached the MP Code of Conduct.

This refers to gifts and benefits he received from George Cottrell in the 12 months leading up to the 2024 General Election.

The Code of Conduct states new members must register all their current financial interests, and any registrable benefits received in the 12 months before their election within one month of their election.

The Sunday Times reported on 4 July that Farage accepted substantial benefits from Mr Cottrell, but failed to declare them. He contributed to the Reform UK leader’s political positioning and public profile in the year preceding the election, including paying for his security for several years, funding three staff members to work on his social media output, paying for transport, and providing the use of his property near Buckingham Palace. 

In 2016, George Cottrell was arrested in the US after being caught agreeing to launder money for undercover agents posing as drug traffickers in an FBI sting operation. Cottrell faced 20 years in jail for 21 counts related to money laundering, fraud, blackmail and extortion, but brokered a plea deal, admitted guilt to a charge of wire fraud and served just eight months in prison.  

Mr Farage is already under investigation for an undeclared £5 million foreign donation he received from crypto billionaire, Christopher Harborne in the year leading up to the 2024 General Election.

In her letter, Ms Saville Roberts states that a “pattern of undeclared” benefits from Mr Cottrell, combined with the financial involvement of Harborne, and the nature of the sectors from which both men derived their wealth meets the threshold at which an investigation should be held.