Data Sources

Data Sources

Official Registers (UK)

Electoral Commission

• URL: https://www.electoralcommission.org.uk/who-we-are-and-what-we-do/elections-and-referendums/past-elections-and-referendums
• Donation register: https://search.electoralcommission.org.uk/English/Donations
• What: All donations >£7,500 to registered political parties, loans, permissibility checks
• Format: Searchable database + bulk CSV downloads
• Frequency: Updated weekly
• Notes: Can filter by party, date range, donor name, donor type (individual/company/trust)

Companies House

• URL: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/companies-house
• Free API: https://api.company-information.service.gov.uk/
• What: Company registrations, directorships, PSC (Persons with Significant Control), annual accounts, filing history
• Use for: Tracking donor companies, shell companies, shared directors across far-right entities
• Key searches: Officer appointments, disqualified directors, company status

Charity Commission (England & Wales)

• URL: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/charity-commission
• Register: https://register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk/
• What: Registered charities, trustees, annual returns, governing documents
• Use for: Identifying political activity disguised as charitable work, trustee connections
• Watch for: Charities with vague "educational" or "community" purposes

Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR)

• URL: https://www.oscr.org.uk/
• What: Scottish charity register
• Notes: Separate jurisdiction, different rules — some groups register in Scotland for easier requirements

Land Registry (HM Land Registry)

• URL: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/land-registry
• What: Property ownership in England and Wales
• Use for: Tracking property holdings of key figures and organisations
• Cost: £3 per title register, £3 per title plan

Insolvency Service

• URL: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/insolvency-service
• What: Bankruptcies, director disqualifications, company liquidations
• Use for: Financial history of key figures, patterns of business failure

Official Registers (International)

US IRS — Tax Exempt Organisation Search

• URL: https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/tax-exempt-organization-search
• What: 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) organisations, Form 990 filings
• Use for: American donors funding UK far-right activity
• Key orgs to check: Heritage Foundation, Alliance Defending Freedom, Family Research Council, Acton Institute
• Form 990: Shows grants, director compensation, foreign activities

US FEC (Federal Election Commission)

• URL: https://www.fec.gov/
• What: Campaign donations in US elections
• Use for: Cross-referencing UK donors with US political giving

OpenCorporates

• URL: https://opencorporates.com/
• What: Global company registry aggregator
• Use for: International company connections, offshore entities
• Free tier: Limited searches. Paid API available.

ICIJ Offshore Leaks

• URL: https://offshoreleaks.icij.org/
• What: Panama Papers, Pandora Papers, Paradise Papers, Offshore Leaks
• Use for: Offshore holdings of key figures and donors

OpenSanctions

• URL: https://www.opensanctions.org/
• What: Sanctions lists, PEPs (Politically Exposed Persons), wanted persons
• Use for: Checking if targets are sanctioned or politically exposed

EU Transparency Register

• URL: https://ec.europa.eu/transparencyregister/public/homePage.do
• What: Lobbying activity in EU institutions
• Use for: UK groups lobbying EU, EU populist party funding disclosures

Crowdfunding & Subscription Platforms

GoFundMe

• URL: https://www.gofundme.com/
• Search: Name, keyword, location
• Notes: Campaigns can be deleted — archive immediately. Show total raised + number of donors (not individual names usually)

GiveSendGo

• URL: https://www.givesendgo.com/
• What: "Christian crowdfunding" — far-right friendly platform
• Notes: Used by Patriot Front, Proud Boys, Tommy Robinson. Less moderation than GoFundMe. Often shows donor names.
• Key: Was hacked in 2022, donor data leaked (Unicorn Riot published)

Patreon

• URL: https://www.patreon.com/
• What: Subscription funding for creators
• Notes: Many far-right media personalities use Patreon. Shows patron count and tier structure, not individual patrons.
• Archive: Save creator page + any visible patron info

SubscribeStar

• URL: https://www.subscribestar.com/
• What: Patreon alternative, popular with deplatformed creators
• Notes: Less transparent than Patreon

Ko-fi / Buy Me a Coffee

• URLs: https://ko-fi.com/ / https://www.buymeacoffee.com/
• What: Tip jar platforms
• Notes: Often linked from YouTube/X/Telegram bios

Social Media & Content Platforms

Telegram

• What: Primary communication platform for UK far-right
• Monetisation: Paid channels, donation bots (@donate), crypto wallet addresses posted in pinned messages
• Tools: Telegram search (tgstat.com, telemetr.io), channel analytics
• Archive: Export channel data regularly

YouTube

• What: Video monetisation (AdSense, SuperChat, channel memberships)
• Tools: Social Blade for subscriber/revenue estimates, Wayback for deleted videos
• Notes: Many far-right creators deplatformed — check Rumble, Bitchute as alternatives

X (Twitter)

• What: X Premium subscriptions, ad revenue sharing
• Notes: Since Musk acquisition, far-right accounts reinstated and monetised

Rumble

• URL: https://rumble.com/
• What: Video platform, far-right friendly
• Notes: Revenue sharing model, less transparent than YouTube

Gab / Parler / Truth Social

• What: Alt-tech social platforms
• Notes: Check for donation appeals, fundraising drives

Court Records

National Archives — Court Judgments

• URL: https://caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk/
• What: Published court judgments (England & Wales)
• Use for: Civil cases involving far-right figures, defamation, injunctions

Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

• URL: https://www.judiciary.uk/
• What: Sentencing remarks, court listings

BAILII

• URL: https://www.bailii.org/
• What: British and Irish Legal Information Institute — case law database

Companies House — Disqualified Directors

• URL: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/disqualified-directors
• What: List of disqualified company directors with reasons

Investigative Journalism & NGOs

Key Outlets

• Bellingcat: Financial OSINT methodology
• openDemocracy: Dark money investigations
• Byline Times: UK political corruption
• Private Eye: Follow the money investigations
• The Guardian: Far-right reporting (check Paul Mason, Jason Burke)
• Hope not Hate: UK far-right monitoring (annual reports)
• Searchlight: Anti-fascist magazine (archives)
• Unicorn Riot: US-based, leaked far-right data
• Bellingcat: Financial OSINT

Key Reports (to find and archive)

• Hope not Hate annual "State of Hate" reports
• openDemocracy dark money series
• Centre for Media Monitoring reports
• Institute for Strategic Dialogue publications

FOI (Freedom of Information)

Useful FOI Targets

• Electoral Commission: refused donations, enforcement actions
• Home Office: proscribed organisations, Prevent referrals
• Police forces: arrests, charges related to far-right activity
• Local authorities: venue hire, event permits
• Universities: speaker events, society affiliations

FOI Resources

• WhatDoTheyKnow: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/ (public FOI requests)
• ICO guidance: https://ico.org.uk/

Academic Sources

Key Journals

• Patterns of Prejudice (Taylor & Francis)
• Journal of Political Ideologies
• Ethnic and Racial Studies
• Social Movement Studies

Key Researchers

• Matthew Feldman (Centre for Fascist, Anti-Fascist and Post-Fascist Studies, Teesside)
• Nigel Copsey (Teesside)
• Hilary Pilkington (Manchester)
• Joel Busher (Coventry)
• Graham Macklin (Center for Research on Extremism, University of Oslo)

Databases

• C-REX (Center for Research on Extremism, Oslo): far-right party database
• TIMS (Terrorism and Insurgency in Movement Societies)