UPDATE 4 September: Channel 4’s undercover investigation has escalated into a serious crisis for Reform UK. Nigel Farage’s longtime aide Dan Jukes and head of policy James Orr have been told to step down, Lee Anderson says there is no chance of their return, and the Electoral Commission is in touch with the Met. Reform denies wrongdoing and Farage says no illegal transaction occurred. Below, we set out the latest developments before preserving our original.

Flags, memberships, merchandise, donations and events can turn political grievance into a revenue stream. That does not prove wrongdoing. It does make transparency a legitimate public-interest question. Protest movements need money. Flags cost money. Venues cost money. Websites, travel, printing, equipment and staff cost money. Asking a political movement how it is funded is therefore not a conspiracy theory or an accusation of corruption. It is one of the.