Reform UK leader speaks out on “huge dangers in this job”
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage (Image: Getty)
Nigel Farage has revealed he was the victim of a firebombing attack on his home. The Reform UK leader said a lit device was put through his letterbox early last year in an “outright arson attempt” when he was not in.
He discovered it when he returned home and “luckily it had burned itself out in the porch”. Police investigated the incident but have not identified any suspects.
Mr Farage told The Telegraph: “There are huge dangers in this job. I’m acutely aware of the love for me, but equally the levels of antipathy that exist.”
He added: “It was an outright arson attempt. I wasn’t at home at the time, but when I came back and opened the door I found the damage.
“Luckily it had burned itself out in the porch, and we think maybe the perpetrators were disturbed in the act. The police were all over it. They did their best but there are no suspects so far.”
The Brexiteer was given a seven-figure donation by Thailand-based British billionaire
Christopher Harborne to fund his security before his return to frontline politics in 2024.
He said: “This money was given to me so that I would be safe and secure for the rest of my life.
“I have tried and failed in the past to get security funded by the Home Office and I don’t think the state will ever help me.
“I’m very much on my own and will be for the rest of my life, and I have to face up to that grim reality.
“Christopher is an ardent supporter who is deeply concerned for my safety.”
Mr Harborne is understood to have given Mr Farage a gift of around £5 million, meaning it was not taxed or declared as it did not count as a political donation.
Mr Farage said it followed his unsuccessful attempt to secure Home Office-funded security in 2019 and after Mr Harborne became concerned about his level of protection when a milkshake was thrown at him.