UK trade unions warn against ‘Americanisation of our politics’ from big political donations
UK trade unions issued a joint statement warning against the 'Americanisation' of British politics following unprecedented £72m donations to Reform UK. While leaders criticized the influence of wealthy individual donors, they stopped short of supporting a cap on political donations to protect union funding. The TUC described union contributions as the 'cleanest money in politics' due to their democratic and collective nature.
- ▪Reform UK received a combined £72m in donations from crypto billionaires Ben Delo and Christopher Harborne.
- ▪Trade union general secretaries warned that such large individual donations threaten the integrity of British democracy.
- ▪The TUC stated that union funding is distinct from individual donations because it consists of collective, democratically controlled subscriptions.
- ▪Communities Secretary Angela Rayner criticized Reform UK for equating billionaire donations with regulated trade union contributions.
- ▪Union leaders called on the government to protect democracy from capture by the super-rich while maintaining the rights of workers to organize.
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| Original publisher | The Guardian — Politics |
| Canonical URL | https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/sep/15/trade-unions-americanisation-politics-political-donations-reform-uk |
| Publication time | Tue, 15 Sep 2026 11:01:34 GMT |
| Retrieval time | 2026-09-15T11:21:52.752Z |
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Trades Union Congress’s general secretary, Paul Nowak, speaks during the conference. Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PAView image in fullscreenTrades Union Congress’s general secretary, Paul Nowak, speaks during the conference. Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PAParty fundingUnion leaders resist political donations cap after Reform given £72mGeneral secretaries say union funding is ‘cleanest money in politics’ and different to that from wealthy individual donors UK politics live – latest updates Jessica Elgot Deputy political editorTue 15 Sep 2026 07.01 EDTLast modified on Tue 15 Sep 2026 07.21 EDTSharePrefer the Guardian on GoogleTrade unions have stopped short of backing a cap on political donations but called for further action on big money in politics, in a joint statement after Reform UK was…
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