“Farage has largely rejected pursuing a wealthy lifestyle.”

The claim has elements of truth but is materially undermined by the evidence available as of December 2011. Farage did abandon a potentially lucrative City commodities-trading career to pursue politics, which supports the broad notion that he was no longer primarily chasing business wealth. However, his supporting assertion in the same interview — that he was experiencing "grinding poverty" and earning "half what a GP earns" — is contradicted by public records. As a Member of the European Parliament since 1999, Farage received a salary roughly equivalent to a British MP's (around £64,000–£66,000 in 2010–11), on top of substantial allowances and expenses. In 2009 he publicly acknowledged having claimed around £2 million in expenses and allowances over a decade. His wife was also paid from his parliamentary allowances (reportedly over £30,000 a year). Meanwhile, average GP pre-tax income in 2010/11 was around £99,000–£113,000 for contractor GPs and about £57,600 for salaried GPs; half of even a salaried GP's earnings would be roughly £28,000 — far below Farage's MEP salary alone. Thus, while Farage had moved away from a private-sector money-making path, the characterization of having "turned his back on a life of money" and living in "grinding poverty" is not borne out by his actual income and allowances. Sources: - The Observer / The Guardian, "Ukip leader boasts of his £2m in expenses" (May 2009): https://web.archive.org/web/20090527061523/http:/www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/may/24/mps-expenses-ukip-nigel-farage - The Independent, "'Poor' Nigel Farage finds it hard to get by on £109,000 a year plus expenses": https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/poor-nigel-farage-finds-it-hard-to-get-by-on-ps109-000-a-year-plus-expenses-9901390.html - BBC News, "Guide to the European Parliament: Salaries": https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11725041 - IPSA, "MPs' pay & pensions" (historical salary table, 2010–11): https://www.theipsa.org.uk/mps-pay-and-pensions - NHS England Digital, "GP Earnings and Expenses – 2010/11": https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/gp-earnings-and-expenses-estimates/gp-earnings-and-expenses-2010-11 - GPonline, "GP income fell 1.8% in 2010/11, official data show": https://www.gponline.com/gp-income-fell-18-2010-11-official-data-show/article/1151916 - iNews, "Nigel Farage: Brexit Party leader earns at least €30,000 a month from media company on top of MEP salary" (2019, re: Thorn in the Side founded 2011): https://inews.co.uk/news/politics/nigel-farage-brexit-party-leader-mep-salary-earnings-eu-figures-thorn-in-the-side-media-company-309369