Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Nick Clegg funds Lib Dems in Sheffield Hallam fight

The Lib Dems have received £85,600 from Sir Nick, with just over £30,000 going to his former Sheffield seat.

Nick Clegg funds Lib Dems in Sheffield Hallam fight

FORMER deputy prime minister and Liberal Democrats leader Nick Clegg has been providing financial support in his former constituency seat, the Financial Times revealed.

He donated tens of thousands of pounds to his former Sheffield Hallam seat to boost its fight against the current Labour MP.


Labour's Olivia Blake has been the lawmaker for Sheffield Hallam since 2019. It is expected to be the only seat where Labour and the Lib Dems are in direct competition.

According to FT, people close to Clegg, now a senior Meta executive, said he has been providing financial support since he lost his seat to Labour in 2017 and has increased these donations with larger, monthly payments.

The Electoral Commission’s records show that over the past eight years, the Lib Dems have received £85,600 from Sir Nick, with just over £30,000 going to his former Sheffield seat. Also, his recent donations have not yet been published on the commission’s register.

His contributions to the Sheffield Hallam seat include £15,000 in 2019 and £5,000 in 2022.

The Lib Dems aim to take up to 20 seats from the Tories in the July 4 election, with their Sheffield candidate Shaffaq Mohammed hoping to unseat the Labour MP.

“The next government is going to be a Labour government. [But] if it’s going to be as strong a Labour government as the polls suggest, we might actually need an alternative voice in this region," Mohammed was quoted as saying.

Someone close to the former party leader said that he knows the party faces a tough challenge in his old seat, “considering Labour’s current strong position.”

Data also shows that he donated £25,000 to the central party last year, along with two payments totaling £30,000 to its Scottish branch in 2021 and 2022.

Sheffield Hallam was once a Tory stronghold, and the Lib Dems are now targeting voters who chose Tory in 2019.

Mr. Mohammed told the Financial Times: “The next government will be Labour. But if it’s as strong as the polls suggest, we might actually need an alternative voice in this area.”

Read Also: Gautam Adani reclaims Asia’s richest title overtaking Mukesh Ambani

In 2017, Clegg, after losing his seat to Labour, moved from Westminster to a tech career in California. He now splits his time between the US West Coast and London, using London as a base for travelling to Asia and Europe in his role as Meta’s head of global affairs.

A Lib Dems spokesperson said: “This is no surprise at all. Nick and Shaffaq have known each other for over twenty years. Shaffaq would be a fantastic MP for Sheffield Hallam. Many people are doing all they can to support his campaign.”

Meta has been contacted for a comment.

More For You

Police arrest five after anti-asylum protesters target Heathrow hotel

Anti-migrant protesters demonstrate outside the Cladhan Hotel on August 30, 2025 in Falkirk, Scotland. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Police arrest five after anti-asylum protesters target Heathrow hotel

BRITISH police said they arrested five people on Saturday (30) after masked men tried to force their way into a hotel used by asylum-seekers, a day after the government won a court ruling on the use of another hotel to house migrants.

Two groups of anti-asylum protesters marched to the Crowne Plaza Hotel near Heathrow Airport before some demonstrators tried to break in, London's Metropolitan Police force said.

Keep ReadingShow less
Modi backs peaceful Ukraine settlement in call with Zelenskyy

Volodymyr Zelenskiy (L) and Narendra Modi

Modi backs peaceful Ukraine settlement in call with Zelenskyy

INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi reaffirmed his support for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine during a telephone conversation with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Modi's office said.

Zelenskiy, speaking in his nightly video address on Saturday (30), said Modi supported Ukraine's call for a ceasefire in the war with Russia and hoped that notion would be heard at the forthcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in China.

Keep ReadingShow less
Modi says "peace and stability" achieved on China border in Xi meeting

India's prime minister Narendra Modi shakes hands with Chinese president Xi Jinping during a meeting on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin, China, August 31, 2025. India's Press Information Bureau/Handout via REUTERS

Modi says "peace and stability" achieved on China border in Xi meeting

INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi said New Delhi was committed to improving ties with Beijing in a key meeting with China's president Xi Jinping on the sidelines of a regional security forum on Sunday (31).

Modi is in China for the first time in seven years to attend a two-day meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, along with Russian president Vladimir Putin and other leaders from Central, South and Southeast Asia and the Middle East in a show of Global South solidarity.

Keep ReadingShow less
wasim bashir

Bashir retired from the force while under investigation but will still face misconduct proceedings. (Photo credit: West Yorkshire Police)

West Yorkshire Police

Former West Yorkshire Police officer jailed for misconduct

A FORMER West Yorkshire Police officer has been sentenced to two years and three months in prison after being convicted of misconduct in a public office.

Wasim Bashir, 55, who worked as a detective constable in Bradford District, was found guilty of one count of misconduct in a public office for forming a sexual relationship with a female victim of crime. He was sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on Friday, 29 August.

Keep ReadingShow less
Epping protests

Protesters calling for the closure of The Bell Hotel, which was housing asylum seekers, gather outside the council offices in Epping on August 8, 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Over a dozen councils plan legal action despite Home Office court win

Highlights:

  • Court of Appeal has overturned injunction blocking use of Epping hotel for asylum seekers.
  • Judges say human rights obligations outweigh local safety concerns.
  • At least 13 councils preparing legal action despite ruling.
  • Protests outside the Bell Hotel lead to arrests and police injuries.

MORE than a dozen councils are moving ahead with legal challenges against the use of hotels for asylum seekers despite the Home Office winning an appeal in the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less