Reform UK’s Richard Tice Under Investigation by Parliamentary Standards
Richard Tice, deputy leader of Reform UK and MP for Boston and Skegness, is now under formal investigation by Parliament’s Commissioner for Standards over an alleged failure to declare a financial interest.
The development was first reported early on Monday 3 August 2026 by political journalists and rapidly circulated across X (formerly Twitter). Multiple accounts, including Politics UK and Times Radio producer Ollie Cole, confirmed the news, noting that the probe centres on a potential breach of the MPs’ Code of Conduct.
According to details shared alongside the initial reports, the investigation falls under Rule 6 of the Code. This rule requires: “Members must always be open and frank in declaring any relevant interest in any proceeding of the House or its Committees, and in any communications with Ministers, Members, public officials or public office holders.”
Specifics of the undeclared interest have not been fully detailed in publicly available free sources at the time of writing, though The Telegraph published a related piece headlined around the standards investigation and Reform donations row.
Background of Financial Scrutiny
This is not the first time Tice has faced questions over financial declarations. In late July 2026, Liberal Democrat MP Lisa Smart referred him to the same standards commissioner over an undeclared loan of nearly £80,000 from George Cottrell, an aide linked to Nigel Farage. The commissioner declined to open a full inquiry, stating the complaint lacked sufficient evidence of a breach.
Tice has previously insisted that certain loans related to his property and business interests (including companies such as Britain Means Business) were corporate rather than personal and therefore not registrable in the same way. He has also faced separate media scrutiny over tax affairs at his companies and police investigations into donations flowing through entities he controls to Reform UK ahead of the 2024 general election.
Reform UK as a whole has been under sustained pressure on funding issues. Party leader Nigel Farage is himself subject to a standards investigation over a previously undeclared £5 million gift from crypto billionaire Christopher Harborne. Metropolitan Police inquiries into certain donations connected to the Cottrell family and Tice-linked companies remain ongoing.
Political Context
Tice, a property developer and former leader of Reform UK (then still under different branding), returned to the deputy role after Farage reclaimed the leadership. As the party’s business, trade and energy spokesman, he is one of Reform’s most prominent figures in the Commons.Opponents have framed the succession of financial questions as evidence of deeper problems with transparency. Reform figures, including Tice himself in earlier responses to related stories, have dismissed much of the coverage as politically motivated attacks by the “establishment” aimed at damaging a rising challenger party.
The Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards (currently Daniel Greenberg) investigates potential breaches of the Code of Conduct. Outcomes can range from no further action to recommendations for sanctions by the Committee on Standards, which in serious cases can include suspension and the possibility of a recall petition.As of Monday morning, neither Tice nor Reform UK had issued a detailed public response to the latest development. The investigation remains at an early stage, and further details are expected to emerge in the coming days.
This story is developing.
