Politician under scrutiny after recording paid messages inside Parliament
The Reform UK MP Lee Anderson has used his parliamentary office to record paid-for personalized messaging videos, potentially violating rules that prohibit commercial use of the Palace of Westminster.
Anderson, who had already been cautioned about commercial filming in Westminster, sold two videos from what he described as the “beating heart of democracy in Westminster” in early February 2025.
Both were Valentine’s Day messages sold for £45 and £56 via the video messaging app Cameo, which allows the public to request short clips from celebrities and public figures.
A spokesperson for Anderson stated he donated the money to charity.
Anderson joined his party leader, Nigel Farage, on Cameo in July 2024, just two days after being elected as a Reform MP.
Farage’s use of the platform has been scrutinized following a Guardian investigation revealing he recorded videos endorsing a rioter, echoing far-right slogans, and supporting a neo-Nazi event.
Farage, who has earned at least £374,893 from the platform over the past five years, also sold videos containing misogynistic comments and references to antisemitic conspiracy theories.
Farage’s spokesperson stated his Cameo videos should “not be treated as political statements or campaign activity.” They noted he had recorded thousands of videos, adding: “At that scale, occasional mistakes can occur.”
Compared to Farage, Anderson is a far less in-demand – and somewhat cheaper – figure on the platform. The Guardian located only 22 public videos produced by Anderson, compared to 1,794 by Farage in the same period. Two of Anderson’s videos were filmed from his taxpayer-funded parliamentary office, potentially violating rules prohibiting the commercial use of the Palace of Westminster.
The Reform MP has already been found in breach of these rules, after he filmed a promotional clip for his GB News program from the roof of the House of Commons. Following the standards commissioner’s finding against him in September 2023, Anderson apologized for breaching the MPs’ code of conduct and vowed not to create commercial videos on the parliamentary estate again.
However, Anderson, the chief whip of Reform’s eight MPs, faces renewed scrutiny over two videos discovered by the Guardian that he filmed on 12 February 2025.
In the first clip, Anderson states he is speaking from the “beating heart of democracy in Westminster” to send Valentine’s Day wishes to “Steve,” a Reform voter and member. “Make sure you treat the missus to something really nice and hopefully get you down here to Westminster one day and come and say hello to Reform UK. Have a good one, fella,” he adds.
In the second clip, filmed as the Commons adjourned, Anderson told “Scotty” to “get your act together” for Valentine’s Day.
“The flowers that you sent her last year, I’ve been told you got them from the local cemetery on the way back from the pub after you had one too many,” he said. “She doesn’t want flowers, mate. She wants a cruise. Sort yourself out, you pathetic man. All the best.”
Anderson’s spokesperson stated: “Lee Anderson has not earned a single penny from Cameo. One hundred percent of the money he receives from the platform is donated directly to a male suicide charity.”
In six other videos, filmed in locations other than Westminster, Anderson offers tours of the Houses of Parliament for the recipients of the paid-for clips. He told them if they were ever in London to “come and see me” and he would show them around the parliamentary estate and go for “a few pints together.”
These videos risk further breaches of MPs’ rules, as it is not permitted to offer tours of parliament as “a prize or reward for fundraising or for any other kind of benefit.”
Head of Investigations
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