Tories fight to keep donors.as Reform UK rises in polls

The Conservatives are fighting to stem the loss of major donors to Nigel Farage’s Reform UK as the insurgent party rises in the polls.

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Tory leader Kemi Badenoch was expected to appear at the party’s London conference in Westminster yesterday, with wealthy Conservative donors having been invited to an evening drinks reception. There are fears at Tory HQ that many of the party’s donors are considering withdrawing their support and backing Mr Farage’s party instead.

Reform held a £25,000-a-head fundraiser in Mayfair on Tuesday attended by ex-Conservative donors Bassim Haidar and Mohamed Amersi. The evening reportedly generated more than £1m in funds for the party, which will aid its campaign to attack the Conservatives and paint Reform as the real opposition to Labour.

The surge in donations to Reform comes after the party leapfrogged Ms Badenoch’s party in the polls, pushing the Conservatives into third. The latest Techne tracker poll for