Billionaire brothers David and Simon Reuben have donated office space to Laila Cunningham, Reform UK’s candidate for the 2028 London mayoral election, expanding their financial support for the right-wing populist party. According to Electoral Commission filings, the Reubens provided £14,157 worth of premises in the second quarter of this year, reportedly for Cunningham’s campaign use.
The Reubens, Britain’s second wealthiest family with a net worth approaching £28 billion, own the Millbank Tower in Westminster, which serves as Reform UK’s headquarters. The brothers, born in India to an Iraqi Jewish family and established as property magnates in London, made their initial fortune in Russian aluminium after the Soviet Union’s collapse before shifting focus to UK real estate developments.
Previously significant donors to the Conservative Party, the brothers contributed £1.3 million before switching allegiance to Reform UK, making a £100,000 donation in November 2025. The office space donation is reported to be an additional support following that financial contribution.
Cunningham, a former Crown Prosecution Service prosecutor, has centred her campaign on tackling crime in London. At a recent Reform conference, she expressed confidence that the party could secure victory in the capital. The mayoral contest has recently seen heightened competition, with former foreign secretary Sir James Cleverly resigning from the opposition front bench to pursue the Conservative candidacy, offering a direct challenge to Labour’s Sir Sadiq Khan.
Reform UK has faced recent controversies related to donations, including a Channel 4 News undercover report alleging senior party aides solicited illegal overseas funding. The Metropolitan Police have confirmed an ongoing investigation, though Reform UK denies any wrongdoing. There is no indication that the Reuben brothers’ donation violated any regulations, and it was properly declared to the Electoral Commission.
The Reuben family’s increasing involvement with Reform has sparked discussion within the party about whether its billionaire backers are shifting Reform away from its original populist, anti-immigration platform. The brothers’ business interests extend internationally, with "deep, discreet relationships" with sovereign wealth funds, including Gulf-based entities, and co-investments in UK regeneration projects. Notably, in 2021, they acquired a 15 percent stake in Newcastle United Football Club alongside Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
The donations to Reform have been channelled through Investors in Private Capital Limited, a vehicle controlled by the Reuben brothers. After exiting the Russian aluminium industry by 2000, selling assets including to Roman Abramovich, they concentrated on London property. Their redevelopment of Millbank Tower incorporated residential apartments, a luxury hotel, and office space now used by Reform UK as it seeks to professionalise its operations.
Neither Reform UK nor the Reuben brothers responded to detailed inquiries regarding their relationship.