Police assess donations to Robert Jenrick’s Conservative leadership bid

Metropolitan Police officers are assessing evidence around donations to Robert Jenrick’s 2024 Conservative leadership campaign after the Electoral Commission referred the case earlier this year. The allegation is that almost £40,000 came from a foreign donor, a route that would breach UK electoral rules.

The donation trail runs through Spott Fitness Limited, a UK-registered company. Jenrick received three separate £25,000 donations from the company in July 2024, a total of £75,000. One businessman said he was the person behind the £75,000 gift, which came via a company that had taken loans from a firm registered in a tax haven.

UK campaign finance rules require donations to come from permissible sources, generally donors with a UK connection that meet eligibility tests. Registered political parties must report accepted donations on a quarterly basis, while the Electoral Commission also requires donations above set thresholds to be disclosed. For members associations, the reporting threshold is £11,180; for individuals, donations and loans above or aggregating to more than £2,230 must be reported.

Jenrick defended the money at the time, saying he believed it was “perfectly legal and valid” and that the company donation had been made within the rules. He also said the details would be set out on Companies House in the normal way. Jenrick now says the allegations are “entirely false” and has described the case as a Tory smear campaign.

He was sacked as shadow justice secretary and suspended from the Conservative Party in January 2026 amid allegations that he was plotting to defect to Reform UK. He later joined Reform UK and attacked the Conservatives as having “broke[n] Britain”.

Reform UK has faced separate donation-related scrutiny around Nigel Farage in July 2026.