Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has accused the anti-far right group HOPE Not Hate of violating charity law by campaigning for Labour candidate Andy Burnham in the upcoming Makerfield by-election, prompting a complaint to the Charity Commission.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has accused the far-left group HOPE Not Hate of breaching charity rules by engaging in party politics in the upcoming special by-election in Makerfield next month.
HOPE Not Hate, which describes itself as the UKs leading campaign group against the far right, has become deeply involved in the June 18th election. The election was sparked this month following the resignation of Josh Simons, an anti-Brexit activist turned MP, who stepped down to allow Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham to win a seat in Parliament. This move is seen as enabling Burnham to launch a leadership challenge against faltering Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
The involvement of HOPE Not Hate began with attempts to tarnish the right-wing candidate in the race, local plumber and Army reservist Robert Kenyon for Reform UK. This is typical of the so-called anti-fascist organisation, according to Farage. Nigel Farage wrote to the Charity Commission on Wednesday over alleged further involvement of HOPE Not Hate in the race.
He claimed that the group is actively campaigning for Labour candidate Andy Burnham, citing a leaflet that allegedly endorses Burnham and attempts to influence voters decisions. The tone and content of the leaflet is clearly directed towards persuading the reader to vote for a particular candidate, and the text in the footer, To join the local fightback against Reform, please scan the QR code, is party political, Mr Farage wrote.
The Reform chief raised a longstanding question surrounding HOPE Not Hate: that it claims to be two separate groups, one with charitable status and the other serving as a campaign group. Although legally separate, opponents have long argued that they are not genuinely independent. Farage added that Hope Not Hate Ltd continues to be funded almost entirely by grants from HUCT, the charity arm.
In their 2024 annual report, they noted a grant of 787,858 pounds, against a total charitable expenditure from the charity of 893,701 pounds for the period. The charity made no other grants that year, and the remaining charitable expenditure is only related to operational costs.
The Charity Commission concluded a compliance case into the matter earlier this year without taking any action against HOPE Not Hate, following years of complaints over whether it was connected to and/or endorsed by the charity. However, although the regulator found that the trustees have now made the two groups distinct, it still expressed criticism over how long it took the charity to take these steps.
In January, the regulator said that while charities have a right to engage in politics to advance their philanthropic aims, they must ensure that their activities are not party political. We have been critical of the time it has taken for legitimate concerns to have been addressed by the charity but it has since made positive steps forward. We expect this to be maintained and we will monitor the charitys continued progress, he said at the time.
Mr Farage claimed that the alleged campaigning in Makerfield demonstrated that the charitys trustees are failing to ensure that grants made by the organisation are only used for charitable purposes. He said that the charitys apparent funding of HOPE Not Hates political activities represents a clear conflict of interest on the part of the trustees and a clear breach of the Charity Commissions regulations.
The Reform boss noted that many of the trustees and directors of HOPE Not Hate are either current or former Labour Party politicians. The groups have long been tied to the upper echelons of the governing leftist party, with current Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy having previously been associated.
Despite its left-wing bent, the group was also promoted heavily by the former Tory government, which frequently relied on HOPE Not Hate for information on the threat it claims to exist from right-wing extremism in Britain, despite security officials frequently noting that the threat from far-left extremism is also significant. A spokesperson for HOPE Not Hate responded by saying that Reform UKs complaint is a transparent attempt to distract from legitimate scrutiny of its candidate in Makerfield, following an investigation published by HOPE not hate last week, which revealed misogynistic and degrading comments he made about women.
Reform may not like being scrutinised, but voters deserve to know who is asking for their support. Its a shame that Nigel Farage has not put as much effort into vetting his own candidates as he has done making spurious complaints to the charity commission. Farage can complain all he wants, but we will not shy away from campaigning in Makerfield
Nigel Farage HOPE Not Hate Makerfield By-Election Charity Rules Reform UK
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