Police Scotland is assessing information about possible breaches of election spending rules involving nine Reform UK candidates who stood unsuccessfully in the May 2026 Scottish Parliament election. The party has acknowledged administrative errors and says those involved have sought to correct them.
The allegations arise from an investigation by The Ferret, published on 17 October, which examined candidates’ spending and donation paperwork. Police Scotland has not announced a formal criminal investigation or established that any of the candidates committed an offence.
What the investigation found
According to The Ferret, four Reform UK constituency candidates apparently failed to submit required campaign spending and donation returns. Five further candidates in Edinburgh submitted spending returns but allegedly did not provide the separate signed declarations required for their constituency campaigns.
The City of Edinburgh Council confirmed to the publication that the five Edinburgh candidates had supplied constituency spending returns and declarations for their regional list campaigns, but not the relevant constituency declarations. The distinction matters: the allegation concerning those five is about missing declarations, not missing spending returns.
None of the nine candidates was elected. The reported issues concern individual candidate paperwork, not a finding that Reform UK as a party exceeded spending limits or received unlawful donations.
Police Scotland and Reform UK respond
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Information has been received and is being assessed.” That statement does not confirm that a formal criminal investigation has begun.
Reform UK told PA Media that the problems were “simple administrative errors” involving people still learning electoral procedures. The party said those concerned regretted the lack of diligence and had since sought to provide the requested information.
What election law requires
Electoral Commission guidance says agents for constituency candidates must submit spending and donation returns to the relevant returning officer, with declarations signed by both candidate and agent. Nil returns are required even where no campaign spending occurred, subject to applicable legal exceptions and defences.
For results declared on 9 May 2026, the guidance lists 15 June as the deadline for the spending return and agent declaration. The rules are intended to make election spending and sources of campaign finance transparent.
The Electoral Commission monitors compliance with reporting requirements, while police handle potential criminal breaches relating to candidate returns. Missing or incomplete paperwork does not, by itself, establish deliberate dishonesty or unlawful campaign funding.
What happens next?
Police Scotland has not announced charges or a formal investigation concerning these nine candidates. It remains to be seen whether the assessment leads to further action or whether the reported paperwork problems are resolved without proceedings.
Any subsequent decision should be reported separately from the original allegations and Reform UK’s explanation.