Nigel Farage revealed as highest-earning MP with £98k-a-month GB News salary

Nigel Farage’s £30,000 trip to the US after Donald Trump’s attempted assassination was paid for by a donor

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage has been revealed to be the highest-earning MP, earning more than £1m a year from work he does outside parliament.

The MP for Clacton said he is receiving almost £98,000 a month for presenting on television channel GB News, for a reported 32 hours a week.

Alongside his GB news earnings, Mr Farage revealed that a donor had funded a £30,000 trip to the US so he could support his friend Donald Trump following his attempted assassination.

The disclosures were made in the latest Register of Members’ Financial Interests, published by parliament.

In addition to his work with GB News, Mr Farage received £16,597.22 from the paid video app Cameo and £4,000 for writing articles for The Telegraph.

Mr Farage’s total monthly hours of paid work outside of being an MP is given as 128, approximately 32 hours a week. As an MP, Mr Farage would receive a basic annual salary of £91,346 plus expenses for his office and staff, and housing costs.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, with boxer Derek Chisora, wearing boxing gloves at a gym in Clacton while on the general election campaign trail (PA Wire)

During the general election, Mr Farage cancelled his GB News show, which aired Monday to Thursday each week, to focus on campaigning, but following his success in Clacton he returned to the channel as a presenter.

Ofcom has repeatedly found that GB News has breached broadcasting rules on impartiality, which allow politicians to present current affairs programmes but not act as newsreaders.

The media watchdog has previously investigated programmes presented by former Tory MP Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg as well as former Conservative minister Esther McVey and former backbencher Philip Davies.

In his declaration of gifts, the Reform leader also listed two ringside tickets to a boxing match between Derek Chisora and Joe Joyce.

The MP for Clacton visited the US from July 17 to 19 directly after the state opening of Parliament and just two weeks after the general election. He said that the reason for his visit to Milwaukee was “to support a friend who was almost killed and to represent Clacton on the world stage”.

Mr Farage estimates that he works 32 hours a week on work outside parliament (AFP via Getty Images)

The cost of flights and accommodation for Mr Farage and one staffer is listed as £32,836.

Details of a £9,000 trip to Belgium in April were also given, donated by George Cottrell, a former senior adviser to Mr Farage, who was convicted of one count of wire fraud in the US.

On the visit to Brussels, Mr Farage spoke at the National Conservatism conference, where Conservative MP Suella Braverman and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban were also in attendance.

Mr Farage posted on X: “To be clear… the GB News sum paid to me and declared includes VAT, and was for several months of work.

“It was paid to my company, which has significant expenses.

“Sorry to disappoint the media.”