“Lord Bamford’s latest political donation makes the point, yet again, that we need a cap on donations.”
Lord Anthony Bamford, billionaire Tory donor and chair of J.C. Bamford Excavators, has handed £200,000 to Reform UK.
At a press conference pitched at wooing small businesses, Nigel Farage thanked Bamford for the donation.
Farage added: “They’ve given over £10 million to the Conservatives over the years, but they’re giving us some money because they know we are pro-entrepreneurship. They know we are pro-start-up. They know that we are pro-small business.”
It is understood that Bamford’s company has also donated £200,000 to the Tories.
In November 2024, Bamford funded a helicopter trip for Farage and one of his staff members, which cost over £8,400.
The £200,000 donation comes after repeated promotion of JCB pothole-filling equipment by Reform UK on social media.
In April, Farage said: “I haven’t seen anything more practical or better in solving the pothole problem.”
Tice also promoted the machine on Facebook in September, while Zia Yusuf mentioned it during a Sky News appearance and shared the clip on TikTok.
At Reform’s party conference in September, JCB had a large presence and there was a Pothole Pro on display.
Reform councillors in Lincolnshire, Bayleigh Robinson and Stuart Grantham filmed a video with the Pothole Pro back in September, saying they’ve got it on trial for the next year.
Lincolnshire County Council had already trialled the machine back in 2021, but the Tories, who previously ran the council had found it not to offer good value for money at the time.
The Tories have received millions of pounds in donations from JCB and its directors since 2002.
A UN report in 2020 linked JCB to the destruction of Palestinian villages and found that its machinery was being used to build Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
JCB is also allegedly liable for an outstanding £500 million debt to HMRC due to underpayment of UK taxes.
Tom Brake, CEO of Unlock Democracy and former Lib Dem MP, told Left Foot Forward: “Lord Bamford’s latest political donation makes the point, yet again, that we need a cap on donations. Donors’ cash buys influence and access denied to others. A £5,000 annual limit on individual or company donations would take big money out of politics.”
Olivia Barber is a reporter at Left Foot Forward
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