Companies linked to Tory donors given £8.4bn in public contracts since 2016

Companies linked to Conservative donors have collectively received £8.4bn in public money since 2016, analysis shows, more than 150 times what the party has received in support.

Government spending and political donation records reveal that key contributors have given £53.7m to the Tory party since January 2015, while controlling firms that have received billions in government and NHS contracts over eight years.

An anti-corruption charity has called for a ban on parties accepting donations from companies with public contracts, which would bring the UK in line with the US and other countries in Europe.

Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, said: “The British public are understandably still angry that so much money from the public purse ended up with the friends and donors of the Tory party.”

There is no suggestion that the individuals or companies named have broken the law or committed any wrongdoing. But the analysis shines a light on the high value of contracts handed to political donors, and raises questions about the risk of conflict of interest.

The donors include:

• Frank Hester, whose company The Phoenix Partnership has received £427.7m from the NHS and Department for Health since 2016 and who has donated £15.3m to the Conservatives since 2023. The businessman, mired in a row about comments condemned as racist and misogynistic, gave the Conservative party £5m in January.

• JCB Service, which donated almost £3.3m between May 2017 and September last year. Companies within the same corporate grouping have directly received £566,161 between April 2016 and April this year.

• Richard Harpin, who has donated £2.7m between May 2016 and March 2024, including a donation from a company he has significant control over: Growth Partner LLP. His firms Harmony Bridge Limited and Liberty House (Hull) Ltd received a combined £730,980 from Homes England between May 2019 and August 2021.

• Dr Selva Pankaj, who has donated £727,000 to the Conservatives since November 2015. His company FP(GB) LTD (formerly known as Fortress Properties) received £4,733,336 from Homes England between November 2020 and August 2023.

The list of donors receiving public money includes many developers and property industry firms. Since 2016, 124 donor-linked companies have received more than £1bn from Homes England, the body that funds new affordable housing. A Guardian analysis of donations last year found that at least 10% of donations received by the Conservative party since 2010 had come from people or companies linked to the property industry.

The figures are almost certainly an underestimate, because transparency thresholds for donation declarations and government spending mean that not all information is made public. The Guardian used public spending receipts provided by the government procurement data provider Tussell.

Previously, any political donation over £7,500 had to be reported and published by the Electoral Commission. Since January 2024 the reporting threshold has been raised to £11,180.

Some donors, such as Frank Hester, may have started donating money after their companies were awarded contracts in the public sector. Others will have been donors before their companies were paid by the government.

A separate analysis by the Labour party shows that £4.5bn in contracts were awarded to Conservative-linked firms without competitive tender during the pandemic.

Reeves said: “The scale of Tory sleaze following the onset of the pandemic has been scandalous, with analysis showing £4.5bn of taxpayers’ money being wasted. The British public are understandably still angry that so much money from the public purse ended up with the friends and donors of the Tory party.

“A Labour government will stand up for taxpayers using every means possible to recoup public money lost in pandemic-related fraud and put that money into public services where it belongs.”

Dr Susan Hawley, the executive director of Spotlight on Corruption, said: “The UK needs to do what the US and many of its key allies in Europe do and ban political parties from taking donations from companies (and their bosses) that bid for public contracts. But we also need much more robust rules to prevent companies bidding for public contracts in the first place if they or their owners make political donations.”

All of the named donors have been contacted for comment.

A Conservative party spokesperson said: “All reportable donations are properly and transparently declared to the Electoral Commission, published by them, and comply fully with the law.

“Fundraising is a legitimate part of the democratic process. The alternative is taxpayer funding of political campaigning, which would mean less money for frontline services like schools and hospitals.

“There is no question of any individual influencing party or government policy by virtue to donations they may give to the party.”

A government spokesperson said: “All government contracts are awarded fairly and transparently, in line with the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. All decisions on contracts are rigorously scrutinised to deliver the best value for the taxpayer.”

The Guardian analysis first matched donors to the Companies’ House persons of significant control (PSC) register, with only those matches of high confidence being kept. These – alongside company numbers of corporate donors – were then matched against public spending receipts provided by the government procurement data provider Tussell.

The donations total includes contributions to the central party and local branches but excludes contributions to individual MPs as per the Electoral Commission website. Government receipts were limited to those from central government and NHS bodies – and included contracts procured by any companies in the corporate structure of a donor company.