by Matthew Collins and Simon Cressy
(The following article appeared in this month's edition of "Searchlight" magazine. Readers may be aware that "Hope not Hate", the anti-fascist campaigning body that emerged out of the magazine is thinking of ending its fight with the BNP. This article is reproduced as a reminder to all that the BNP is not dead and the fight must go on)
The Young BNP, followed by the short-lived “BNP Crusaders” and now “Resistance” are intended to represent Nick Griffin’s personal ideological legacy to the “movement”. Having temporarily succeeded in masking elements of his own dubious political history, Griffin is trying to forge the future of his party on a quasi-paramilitary outfit for people aged 18 to 30 with lashings of hearty, white Britishness thrown in. These new “Young Turks” are presented as driven by the wholesome love of their country and untainted like so many of their peers by Nazism and racial hatred.
Since its inception, the BNP’s youth wing has been surrounded by older gun nuts and heavy drinkers. The YBNP with its Nazi volk imagery was supposed to encourage teenage party members to adopt a healthy outdoor lifestyle by playing with knives and airguns while dressed in paramilitary costumes. Around camp fires junior nazis got drunk and engaged in “healthy” teenage debauchery.
After a series of national newspaper exposés, the YBNP morphed into the BNP Crusaders as the party continued to search for a long-term replacement for Griffin. Because of that wider context, a position in the leadership of the youth, or now “young adult”, wing of the BNP is an honour for young white patriots who can thereby present themselves as the future leaders of the BNP.
Among the alumni of the BNP’s youth leadership are Mark Collett, who disgraced himself on national television (more than once), Griffin’s daughter Jennifer, the argumentative Danny Lake, who was sacked by a text message telling him to “p*** off”, and the party’s appalling karaoke recording “artist” Joey Smith. But now, raise your right arms for the fiery star of Channel 4’s 2010 documentary Young, Angry and White, Kieren Trent.
Trent, who is articulate and working class, was seen as something of a boutique acquisition for the party. Certainly angry and white, Trent had been filmed contemplating the temptations of the rival National Front and “autonomous nationalists” of the now-defunct English National Resistance.
Trent’s personal life was a bit of a gift to amateur psychologists. His mother had fled two abusive relationships with Kieren in tow while his father made a new life with a new wife and family elsewhere in the country. Trent, 20, also exhibited a puritan view on sex and relationships, castigating open-mouthed friends as “degenerate”, in particular on the issues of homosexuality and inter-racial relationships, courting unchallenged controversy in a bid for further attention. He even went as far as to check his girlfriend’s ethnicity.
Someone so young with so many insecurities and hang-ups was ideal to head the BNP’s youth section. In February, Trent was named as the leader of the latest incarnation of the young BNP, Resistance, at its launch in a London pub.
His elevation came despite a strange incident the previous month. An interest in European fascism and trips to Europe with other BNP officers and members had stirred Trent’s interest in his own Irish ancestry, always a tricky subject in the BNP. In January he tried to attend a Bloody Sunday commemoration meeting in Conway Hall, London, held jointly by the Republican Network for Unity and the Irish Republican Prisoners’ Support Group, both of which campaign, among other things, for recognition of dissident Irish republican prisoners.
Recognised by the stewards and barred, Trent entered into a long and pained discussion in which he portrayed his membership of the BNP as his own struggle for national liberation, likening it to membership of Irish republican groups. Not only could he reconcile the two, he claimed their interests were mutual. He also offered up some less than complimentary opinions about members of his party, but was still given short shrift.
However Trent has developed other new and potentially dangerous interests.
It seems the girlfriend whose ethnicity Trent doubted has been kicked to the kerb to be replaced by an older woman well known to BNP watchers. The new belle on Trent’s arm is none other than the North East organiser Cheryl Dunn from Hartlepool. This “love match” has caused no end of problems for Trent and the BNP as Dunn already had a partner, the one-time Hartlepool BNP organiser Peter King.
King was convicted last year for racially aggravated harassment and possessing an offensive weapon. Dunn described her relationship with King, a man blessed by a notoriously short fuse, as “violent and abusive” on an internet forum.
With Dunn at Northumbria University and King working in London, opportunity knocked and Dunn and Trent started an affair, sharing as much time together at BNP events as possible.
Eventually the inevitable happened and King found out.
When Trent and Dunn attended a recent BNP event in London together, King confronted the couple, violently assaulting Trent in front of several BNP members. The police were called and King was arrested and remanded in custody. Trent’s injuries were so bad that he was taken to hospital.
Another rising young star is Jordan Pont from Sheffield, the Yorkshire organiser of Resistance. Pont, 21, is known for his Facebook rants against people he feels are holding him back from achieving his ambitions in the party. In a high risk strategy, he even described some of Griffin’s most trusted lieutenants as “useless” when he was demanding last year that he be imposed on the BNP’s Sheffield branch as its organiser.
Now safely ensconced in this role, Jordan has become a loyal Griffinite, but initially toyed with joining the BNP Reform group, which wants to depose Griffin as leader. After a change of heart he dramatically stormed out of a meeting addressed by the party renegade Eddy Butler who is touring the country trying to organise the anti-Griffin movement.
Keen on self promotion, Pont filmed and posted on YouTube his own (dreadful) party political broadcast in support of his campaign to get elected to Sheffield council in East Ecclesfield. He is also a keener participant on internet forums, where he drives home his extreme dislike of Muslims and Islam. In one attack on a critic of the party, Pont rounded on an accusation that the BNP admired Adolf Hitler. Exploding into another of his semiliterate rants, he raged. “How can you say we admire Hitler. Hitler enjoyed having muslims [sic] in his SS, He loved the Islamic Faith! The BNP aren’t to [sic] fond on Muslims and i [sic] for one is against the Islamic Faith.”
Pont’s rise up the BNP ladder has cost him one friendship. Tom Holmes, another young party member with a rather colourful online persona, has taken to posting articles attacking Pont on the internet in a bid to draw unwelcome attention to Pont and thwart his ambitions.
Holmes and Pont initially fell out when Pont accused Holmes of grooming a young girl. Holmes did not deny it but said he had been duped. Holmes now spends time on the British Democracy Forum, Facebook and Indymedia website, posting messages against Pont and the BNP generally, which he feels has overlooked his own brilliant leadership potential. Their dispute could rumble on for a while yet.
Showing posts with label BNP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label BNP. Show all posts
Friday, 13 May 2011
Sunday, 8 May 2011
Are the far right a spent force?
Every decent thinking reader of this blog will have warmly welcomed the news that the BNP have been reduced to only two councillors as a result of last Thursday’s election. One of the key reasons for this failure to retain their seats has been due to the outstanding work of anti-fascist and anti-racist organisations such as Hope not Hate. They should be congratulated.
The danger now is that those opposed to the far right now become complacent as we all enjoy the spectacle of Nick Griffin and the BNP tearing themselves apart. However, there is still much to be done.
Whilst the BNP and NF are capable of derisory results at the polls there are still far right groups that are achieving some disturbing successes.
The anti-immigration policies of the BNP are widely recognised, but less publicised is the stance of the English Democrats. Their vitriol is no different from Griffin’s crew. Take what they say on their website:
“Immigration is out of control. England is the third most densely populated country in the world and, for its size, the most densely populated country in Europe. We have neither the space nor the resources to permit more large-scale immigration. England is targeted by hundreds of thousands of economic migrants each year, who know they can come here easily, costing English taxpayers £billions a year in benefits. Worse still, immigrants are granted housing that young or needy English people are entitled to. In short, mass immigration has placed severe strains on England's housing accommodation, Education and Health Services, and exacerbated road congestion. It is time to close the door. Mass immigration must be ended. We would deport illegal immigrants and all those immigrants who are extremists, terrorists and criminals. We would regain control of our immigration systems by leaving the European Union.”
And on education ….
“The English Democrats support parental choice. Where there is a demand for it, schools should be able to free them-selves from local education authority control and be run independently in a way that suits local needs.”
Gays, women, minority groups had all better beware too. On the matter of political correctness they argue:
“The English Democrats unreservedly condemn this intolerant creed. We reject the self-righteousness of political correctness and condemn the ideology as an evil. Political correctness is incompatible with a free and democratic society.”
Now, ordinarily we might dismiss the English Democrats as a bunch of eccentrics, but the polls last Thursday showed that in some wards they were polling over 20% of the vote. On top of that, the Mayor of Doncaster, Peter Davies joined the English democrats in 2005 and has stood as their candidate since that time.
It is now time anti-fascist groups turned their attention on these anti-immigration groups and exposed their innate racism. The danger is that we concentrate exclusively on the BNP and NF, thus allowing other far right groups like this to gain a foothold.
So far they have failed to achieve any significant gains, but they are increasing and they are putting themselves over as moderates and decent people. They are neither. They are no different from other far right organisations and they need to be exposed and humiliated at the polls.
Let us not forget what happens when you ignore a threat in your own back yard.
First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out - because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me - and there was no one left to speak out for me.
The danger now is that those opposed to the far right now become complacent as we all enjoy the spectacle of Nick Griffin and the BNP tearing themselves apart. However, there is still much to be done.
Whilst the BNP and NF are capable of derisory results at the polls there are still far right groups that are achieving some disturbing successes.
The anti-immigration policies of the BNP are widely recognised, but less publicised is the stance of the English Democrats. Their vitriol is no different from Griffin’s crew. Take what they say on their website:
“Immigration is out of control. England is the third most densely populated country in the world and, for its size, the most densely populated country in Europe. We have neither the space nor the resources to permit more large-scale immigration. England is targeted by hundreds of thousands of economic migrants each year, who know they can come here easily, costing English taxpayers £billions a year in benefits. Worse still, immigrants are granted housing that young or needy English people are entitled to. In short, mass immigration has placed severe strains on England's housing accommodation, Education and Health Services, and exacerbated road congestion. It is time to close the door. Mass immigration must be ended. We would deport illegal immigrants and all those immigrants who are extremists, terrorists and criminals. We would regain control of our immigration systems by leaving the European Union.”
And on education ….
“The English Democrats support parental choice. Where there is a demand for it, schools should be able to free them-selves from local education authority control and be run independently in a way that suits local needs.”
Gays, women, minority groups had all better beware too. On the matter of political correctness they argue:
“The English Democrats unreservedly condemn this intolerant creed. We reject the self-righteousness of political correctness and condemn the ideology as an evil. Political correctness is incompatible with a free and democratic society.”
Now, ordinarily we might dismiss the English Democrats as a bunch of eccentrics, but the polls last Thursday showed that in some wards they were polling over 20% of the vote. On top of that, the Mayor of Doncaster, Peter Davies joined the English democrats in 2005 and has stood as their candidate since that time.
It is now time anti-fascist groups turned their attention on these anti-immigration groups and exposed their innate racism. The danger is that we concentrate exclusively on the BNP and NF, thus allowing other far right groups like this to gain a foothold.
So far they have failed to achieve any significant gains, but they are increasing and they are putting themselves over as moderates and decent people. They are neither. They are no different from other far right organisations and they need to be exposed and humiliated at the polls.
Let us not forget what happens when you ignore a threat in your own back yard.
First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out - because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me - and there was no one left to speak out for me.
Tuesday, 26 April 2011
Deviousness amongst the far right
I may despise the BNP, but at least they are honest about standing in elections on their racist, homophobic platform. This is not the case with some of the other candidates standing in local and parish elections throughout the country.
Take the case of those standing for the English Democrats who are fielding a disturbingly large number of candidates. A glance at their website would suggest they want to see the restoration and improvement of English values and the maintenance of this green and pleasant land. No problem there, until you start to dig deeper. Then you read they want to see “A points system [that is] used to bring an end to mass immigration and only allow that immigration which is in the national interest. A points system should not be used to facilitate and legitimise a continuation of mass immigration. Immigrants should not be a burden on the taxpayer and should be economically self-sustaining.”
They aren’t much better when it comes to other issues. On the matter of political correctness they argue: “[English Democrats] reject the self-righteousness of political correctness and condemn the ideology as an evil.”
On multi-culturalism they argue it “… is an ideology which suggests that a mix of many cultures in one society is desirable and that it is the duty of government to actively encourage cultural diversity with the state. Further, it suggests that all cultures should be treated as equal. A logical extension of that is that all languages, histories and law codes should be treated equally. This is clearly impossible in a unified country.”
Nice people – as long a you are white and part of the indigenous population, but beware of you are black, Asian Chinese, or Eastern European.
These unsavoury characters are standing in the following wards and need to be confronted. If they appear on your doorstep, you may care to interrogate them about their obvious racism. A full list of names and wards is at the end of this entry.
On top of this, the far-right British People’s Party is also standing in Calderdale, in Todmorden ward, with David Jones as the candidate for the second year running (he scraped 4.9% of the vote in 2007).
But the biscuit for this week’s most dishonest far –right wing fanatic must go to Paul Gilbert, a prominent member of England’s Parliamentary Party. Unlike all the other fascists, Gilbert did not have the honesty to stand on his racist platform. Instead he chose to set up a local pressure group in one of the wards in Stafford (Gilbert is a candidate in the Haywood and Hixon ward in Stafford). The Save the Haywoods group had, until recently been supported by a number of local residents as it had campaigned against a possible housing development in the village. However, in a recent flyer for the election, Gilbert’s true colours started to appear. The leaflet called for a reversal in “the trend of politicians selling out to multi-culturalism and political correctness.
Well Gilbert has so far managed to have himself kicked out of the Tory Party and UKIP (no small achievement as this ramshackle body seem to be willing to accept anybody), so with some luck he’ll get thrown out of the Save the Haywoods group too.
Villagers voting in the election need to be made aware they are being asked to vote for a right-wing fanatic, so if you know anyone in Stafford, let them know who they have amongst them.
As promised, below is a full list of English Democrat candidates in the election – if one is near you, join the campaign to expose their racist views.
English Democrat Candidates:
Ashfield District Council
Woodhouse Ward - Carole Terzza
Woodhouse Ward - Tony Ellis
Barnsley City Council
Hoyland Milton Ward - Kevin Riddiough
Boston Council
Fenside Ward - Elliott Fountain
Fenside Ward - David Owen
Fishtoft Ward - Dee Bills
Kirton Ward - Mark Blackamore
Pilgrim Ward - Jamie Taylor
Skirbeck Ward - Callum McCuaig
Skirkbeck Ward - Carl Rowe
Skirkbeck Ward - Timmy Woodcock
Staniland North Ward - Richard Green
Staniland South Ward - Darren Crozier
Staniland South Ward - Liam Blackamore
West Ward - Ross Isham
Bradford City Council
Wibsey Ward - Andrew Clarke
Brentwood Council
Warley Ward - Kim Burelli
Bristol City Council
Bedminster Ward - Jon Baker
Filwood Ward - Barbara Wright
Frome Vale Ward - Greg Shaw
Hartcliffe Ward - Stephen Wright
Hengrove Ward - Mike Blundell
St George West Ward - Eddie Tranter
Whitchurch Park Ward - Ray Carr
Broxbourne Borough Council
Bury Green Ward - Chris Francis
Chestnut Central Ward - Ramon Paul Johns
Rosedale Ward - Steve McCole
Wormley and Turnford Ward - William James Dewick
Bury Council
Besses Ward - Stephen Morris
Holyrood Ward - Valerie Morris
Dartford Borough Council
Bean and Darenth Ward - Gary Rodgers
Bean and Darenth Ward - Neal Tibby
Bean and Darenth Ward - Steve Culliford
Brent Ward - Jerry Chatterton
Brent Ward - Mike Tibby
Brent Ward - Mitchel Jackson
Castle Ward - Fancis Maud
Greenhithe Ward - Dianne Cooper
Heath Ward - Carol White
Joyce Green Ward - Glen Garderner
Joydens Wood Ward - Laurence Williams
Littlebrook Ward - Paul Wells
Newtown Ward - Darren Staines
Newton Ward - Jim Read
Newton Ward - Louise Uncles
Princess Ward - Christine Dunmall
Stone Ward - Paul Cooper
Sutton Hawley Ward - Chris Bousfield
Town Ward - Andy Waghorn
Town Ward - Nathan King
West Hill Ward - John Griffiths
West hill Ward - Michelle Duncan
West Hill Ward - Steve Uncles
Willington Ward - Terresa Cannon
Doncaster City Council
Adwick Ward - Vivian Woodrow
Askern Spa Ward - Malcolm Woodrow
Bentley Ward - Tony Wagstaff
Bessacarr and Cantley Ward - Keith Hewitt
Edenthorpe, Kirk Sandall and Barnby Dunn Ward - Fred Gee
Edlington and Warnsworth Ward - John Brennan
Finningley Ward - Nigel Berry
Great North Road Ward - Steve Grocott
Hatfield Ward - Mick Glynn
Sprotborough Ward - Barbara Hewitt
Stainforth and Morrends Ward - Margeret Holt-Taylor
Wheatley Ward - Roy Penketh
East Lindsey District Council
Chapel St Leonards Ward - Tim Burritt
ConningsbyTattersall/ Ward - Ronnie Ford-Kennedy
East Riding of Yorkshire Council
Hessle Ward - Victoria Carte
Hessle Ward - Peter Mawer
Hessle Ward - Michael Burton
Tranby Ward - Michael cassidy
Tranby Ward - Peter Asquith-Cowen
Willerby and Kirkella Ward - Joanne Robinson
Willerby and Kirkella Ward - Graham Robinson
Willerby and Kirkella Ward - John Ottaway
Epping Forest District Council
Chipping Ongar, Greensted and Marden Ash Ward - Robin Tilbrook
Erewash Borough Council
Hallam Fields Ward - Giles Farrand
Hull City Council
Boothferry Ward - David Rust
Derringham Ward - Billy Hughes
Newington Ward - Tineke Robinson
Pickering Ward - Peter Mawer
Kettering Borough Council
Brambleside Ward - Derek Hilling
St Peter Ward - Kevin Sills
Kirklees Council
Denby Dale Ward - Paul McEnhill
Leicester City Council
Humberstone and Hamilton Ward - David Haslett
Leeds City Council
Ardsley & Robin Hood Ward - Joanne Beverley
Morley North Ward - Tom Redmond
Morley South Ward - Chris Beverley
Liverpool Council
Central Ward - Steve Greenhalgh
Old Swan Ward - Steve McEllenborough
St Michaels Ward - Neil Kenny
Warbreck Ward -Lee Walton
Medway Council
Chatham Central Ward - Karen Streafield
Lordswood and Capstone Ward - Phoebe Troy
Peninsula Ward - Dean Lacey
Peninsula Ward - Ron Sands
Princess park - Daniel Logan
Rochester West Ward - Agita Sudraba
Strood North - Philip Varnham
Strood South - Michael Walters
Walderslade Ward - Sean Varnham
Medway Parish
Hoo St Werburgh (East Ward) - Ron Sands
North Hertfordshire District Council
Letchworth Grange Ward - Charles Vickers
Pendle Council
Earby Ward- James Jackman
Earby Parish - James Jackman - Elected Uncontested
Peterborough Council
Fletton and Woodston Ward - Kevin Roddis
Northborough Ward - Simon potter
Orton Longueville Ward - Graham Murphy
Park Ward - Maria Goldspink
Stanground Central Ward - Stephen Goldspink
Portsmouth City Council
Baffins Ward - Ian Ducane
Copnor Ward - David Knight
Drayton and Farlington Ward - Dave Ward
Eastney and Craneswater Ward - Peter Lawrence
Rochford District Council
Hockley Central - Thomas Broad
Hullbridge Ward - John Hayter
Lodge Ward - Jason Hodson
Sweyne Park Ward - Alan Twydell
Rossendale Council
Stackstead Ward - Tony Justice
Salford City Council
Little Hulton Ward - Arthur Johnson
Walkden North Ward - Laurence Depares
Walkden South Ward - Paul Whitelegg
Sefton Council
Derby Ward - Dean Mcgrane
Solihull Council
Dorridge/Bentley Heath Ward - Andrew Taylor
Elmdon Ward - Robert Lassen
Knowle Ward - Frank O'Brien
Lyndon Ward - David Reynolds
Stoke City Council
Baddeley, Milton and Norton Ward - Leslie (Sammy) Simpson
Tameside Council
St Michaels Ward - Dave Timpson
Tandridge District Council
Bletchingley and Nutfield Ward - Daniel Beddoes
Three Rivers District Council
Croxley Green Ward - Roger Holmes
Croxley Green Parish Council - Roger Holmes
Tunbridge Wells Council
Sherwood Ward - Jojo Stanley
Walsall Council
Pheasey Park Farm Ward - Christopher Newey
Wellingborough Council
Croyland Ward - Tony Spencer
Take the case of those standing for the English Democrats who are fielding a disturbingly large number of candidates. A glance at their website would suggest they want to see the restoration and improvement of English values and the maintenance of this green and pleasant land. No problem there, until you start to dig deeper. Then you read they want to see “A points system [that is] used to bring an end to mass immigration and only allow that immigration which is in the national interest. A points system should not be used to facilitate and legitimise a continuation of mass immigration. Immigrants should not be a burden on the taxpayer and should be economically self-sustaining.”
They aren’t much better when it comes to other issues. On the matter of political correctness they argue: “[English Democrats] reject the self-righteousness of political correctness and condemn the ideology as an evil.”
On multi-culturalism they argue it “… is an ideology which suggests that a mix of many cultures in one society is desirable and that it is the duty of government to actively encourage cultural diversity with the state. Further, it suggests that all cultures should be treated as equal. A logical extension of that is that all languages, histories and law codes should be treated equally. This is clearly impossible in a unified country.”
Nice people – as long a you are white and part of the indigenous population, but beware of you are black, Asian Chinese, or Eastern European.
These unsavoury characters are standing in the following wards and need to be confronted. If they appear on your doorstep, you may care to interrogate them about their obvious racism. A full list of names and wards is at the end of this entry.
On top of this, the far-right British People’s Party is also standing in Calderdale, in Todmorden ward, with David Jones as the candidate for the second year running (he scraped 4.9% of the vote in 2007).
But the biscuit for this week’s most dishonest far –right wing fanatic must go to Paul Gilbert, a prominent member of England’s Parliamentary Party. Unlike all the other fascists, Gilbert did not have the honesty to stand on his racist platform. Instead he chose to set up a local pressure group in one of the wards in Stafford (Gilbert is a candidate in the Haywood and Hixon ward in Stafford). The Save the Haywoods group had, until recently been supported by a number of local residents as it had campaigned against a possible housing development in the village. However, in a recent flyer for the election, Gilbert’s true colours started to appear. The leaflet called for a reversal in “the trend of politicians selling out to multi-culturalism and political correctness.
Well Gilbert has so far managed to have himself kicked out of the Tory Party and UKIP (no small achievement as this ramshackle body seem to be willing to accept anybody), so with some luck he’ll get thrown out of the Save the Haywoods group too.
Villagers voting in the election need to be made aware they are being asked to vote for a right-wing fanatic, so if you know anyone in Stafford, let them know who they have amongst them.
As promised, below is a full list of English Democrat candidates in the election – if one is near you, join the campaign to expose their racist views.
English Democrat Candidates:
Ashfield District Council
Woodhouse Ward - Carole Terzza
Woodhouse Ward - Tony Ellis
Barnsley City Council
Hoyland Milton Ward - Kevin Riddiough
Boston Council
Fenside Ward - Elliott Fountain
Fenside Ward - David Owen
Fishtoft Ward - Dee Bills
Kirton Ward - Mark Blackamore
Pilgrim Ward - Jamie Taylor
Skirbeck Ward - Callum McCuaig
Skirkbeck Ward - Carl Rowe
Skirkbeck Ward - Timmy Woodcock
Staniland North Ward - Richard Green
Staniland South Ward - Darren Crozier
Staniland South Ward - Liam Blackamore
West Ward - Ross Isham
Bradford City Council
Wibsey Ward - Andrew Clarke
Brentwood Council
Warley Ward - Kim Burelli
Bristol City Council
Bedminster Ward - Jon Baker
Filwood Ward - Barbara Wright
Frome Vale Ward - Greg Shaw
Hartcliffe Ward - Stephen Wright
Hengrove Ward - Mike Blundell
St George West Ward - Eddie Tranter
Whitchurch Park Ward - Ray Carr
Broxbourne Borough Council
Bury Green Ward - Chris Francis
Chestnut Central Ward - Ramon Paul Johns
Rosedale Ward - Steve McCole
Wormley and Turnford Ward - William James Dewick
Bury Council
Besses Ward - Stephen Morris
Holyrood Ward - Valerie Morris
Dartford Borough Council
Bean and Darenth Ward - Gary Rodgers
Bean and Darenth Ward - Neal Tibby
Bean and Darenth Ward - Steve Culliford
Brent Ward - Jerry Chatterton
Brent Ward - Mike Tibby
Brent Ward - Mitchel Jackson
Castle Ward - Fancis Maud
Greenhithe Ward - Dianne Cooper
Heath Ward - Carol White
Joyce Green Ward - Glen Garderner
Joydens Wood Ward - Laurence Williams
Littlebrook Ward - Paul Wells
Newtown Ward - Darren Staines
Newton Ward - Jim Read
Newton Ward - Louise Uncles
Princess Ward - Christine Dunmall
Stone Ward - Paul Cooper
Sutton Hawley Ward - Chris Bousfield
Town Ward - Andy Waghorn
Town Ward - Nathan King
West Hill Ward - John Griffiths
West hill Ward - Michelle Duncan
West Hill Ward - Steve Uncles
Willington Ward - Terresa Cannon
Doncaster City Council
Adwick Ward - Vivian Woodrow
Askern Spa Ward - Malcolm Woodrow
Bentley Ward - Tony Wagstaff
Bessacarr and Cantley Ward - Keith Hewitt
Edenthorpe, Kirk Sandall and Barnby Dunn Ward - Fred Gee
Edlington and Warnsworth Ward - John Brennan
Finningley Ward - Nigel Berry
Great North Road Ward - Steve Grocott
Hatfield Ward - Mick Glynn
Sprotborough Ward - Barbara Hewitt
Stainforth and Morrends Ward - Margeret Holt-Taylor
Wheatley Ward - Roy Penketh
East Lindsey District Council
Chapel St Leonards Ward - Tim Burritt
ConningsbyTattersall/ Ward - Ronnie Ford-Kennedy
East Riding of Yorkshire Council
Hessle Ward - Victoria Carte
Hessle Ward - Peter Mawer
Hessle Ward - Michael Burton
Tranby Ward - Michael cassidy
Tranby Ward - Peter Asquith-Cowen
Willerby and Kirkella Ward - Joanne Robinson
Willerby and Kirkella Ward - Graham Robinson
Willerby and Kirkella Ward - John Ottaway
Epping Forest District Council
Chipping Ongar, Greensted and Marden Ash Ward - Robin Tilbrook
Erewash Borough Council
Hallam Fields Ward - Giles Farrand
Hull City Council
Boothferry Ward - David Rust
Derringham Ward - Billy Hughes
Newington Ward - Tineke Robinson
Pickering Ward - Peter Mawer
Kettering Borough Council
Brambleside Ward - Derek Hilling
St Peter Ward - Kevin Sills
Kirklees Council
Denby Dale Ward - Paul McEnhill
Leicester City Council
Humberstone and Hamilton Ward - David Haslett
Leeds City Council
Ardsley & Robin Hood Ward - Joanne Beverley
Morley North Ward - Tom Redmond
Morley South Ward - Chris Beverley
Liverpool Council
Central Ward - Steve Greenhalgh
Old Swan Ward - Steve McEllenborough
St Michaels Ward - Neil Kenny
Warbreck Ward -Lee Walton
Medway Council
Chatham Central Ward - Karen Streafield
Lordswood and Capstone Ward - Phoebe Troy
Peninsula Ward - Dean Lacey
Peninsula Ward - Ron Sands
Princess park - Daniel Logan
Rochester West Ward - Agita Sudraba
Strood North - Philip Varnham
Strood South - Michael Walters
Walderslade Ward - Sean Varnham
Medway Parish
Hoo St Werburgh (East Ward) - Ron Sands
North Hertfordshire District Council
Letchworth Grange Ward - Charles Vickers
Pendle Council
Earby Ward- James Jackman
Earby Parish - James Jackman - Elected Uncontested
Peterborough Council
Fletton and Woodston Ward - Kevin Roddis
Northborough Ward - Simon potter
Orton Longueville Ward - Graham Murphy
Park Ward - Maria Goldspink
Stanground Central Ward - Stephen Goldspink
Portsmouth City Council
Baffins Ward - Ian Ducane
Copnor Ward - David Knight
Drayton and Farlington Ward - Dave Ward
Eastney and Craneswater Ward - Peter Lawrence
Rochford District Council
Hockley Central - Thomas Broad
Hullbridge Ward - John Hayter
Lodge Ward - Jason Hodson
Sweyne Park Ward - Alan Twydell
Rossendale Council
Stackstead Ward - Tony Justice
Salford City Council
Little Hulton Ward - Arthur Johnson
Walkden North Ward - Laurence Depares
Walkden South Ward - Paul Whitelegg
Sefton Council
Derby Ward - Dean Mcgrane
Solihull Council
Dorridge/Bentley Heath Ward - Andrew Taylor
Elmdon Ward - Robert Lassen
Knowle Ward - Frank O'Brien
Lyndon Ward - David Reynolds
Stoke City Council
Baddeley, Milton and Norton Ward - Leslie (Sammy) Simpson
Tameside Council
St Michaels Ward - Dave Timpson
Tandridge District Council
Bletchingley and Nutfield Ward - Daniel Beddoes
Three Rivers District Council
Croxley Green Ward - Roger Holmes
Croxley Green Parish Council - Roger Holmes
Tunbridge Wells Council
Sherwood Ward - Jojo Stanley
Walsall Council
Pheasey Park Farm Ward - Christopher Newey
Wellingborough Council
Croyland Ward - Tony Spencer
Tuesday, 19 April 2011
Cash-strapped BNP 'turns to racist hardcore'
The Independent yesterday published a very good article exposing our favourite right-wing thugs, the BNP. For those of you who missed it I have published it in full. Please excuse the use of swear words. I would normally not have printed them but fascists have no idea of either decorum or decency. For those who might be offended I have used asterisks to obscure the word whilst retaining the content.
The Independent by Oliver Wright
The BNP was last night accused of turning to "a hardcore group of neo-Nazis and racists" to stand as candidates in next month's local elections.
The anti-BNP campaign group Hope not Hate said it had compiled a dossier of extremist postings of candidates standing on 5 May, either in council elections or those to the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly. Among the postings the group collected from Facebook pages were:
* One BNP candidate in the North of England who posted on his Facebook page a mock advert for the gas Zyklon B – used in the Nazi extermination chambers of the Second World War – captioned, "Try Zyklon B. It's a gas!"
* One candidate urges his followers to "Stamp out diseases today. Spray pakis and poofs with hydrochloric acid".
* An activist in Wales, who has a photograph of his endorsement by BNP leader Nick Griffin on his Facebook page. Underneath it reads: "My grandfather was killed in Auschwitz. Apparently he got p****d and fell out of the watchtower!"
The candidate also posted, "Just popped round to see my Muslim neighbour's new baby. She asked me if I wanted to wind it but that seemed a bit extreme so I gave it a dead leg instead."
* A woman, describing herself as a "a big supporter of the BNP leader Nick Griffin", responded to a protest by Muslims Against The Crusades by saying: "They should all be burned."
* Another candidate posting about his arrest for "an out of date bus ticket", says: "They [police] have just made me hate them even more. From now on I will be celebrating the death of serving police officers when they are announced on the news. May sound a bit extreme but I hate them that much." He also posted that Labour's newly elected MP for Barnsley Central, Dan Jarvis, a former officer in the Parachute Regiment, "should have been shot from behind while facing the enemy".
Overall the BNP will be fielding just over 200 candidates in next month's elections – nearly 500 fewer than the in 2007. It said it "was having to cut its cloth" because of the amount of money it had had to spend defending a legal action against the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).
Hope not Hate said: "As his party crumbles, Nick Griffin has been forced to turn to what even by BNP standards, is a hard core of neo-Nazis and racists. These are not just activists, but people Griffin is putting forward as candidates for elected public office. They are literally the best the BNP now has to offer."
Hope not Hate, which is funded by the trades union movement, said the party had become hopelessly split – with many members defecting to the English Democrats and the breakaway party British Freedom Party.
The BNP has been engaged in a long-running court battle with the EHRC over its policy of restricting membership to "indigenous British people". It scrapped the rule but the Commission accused Mr Griffin of failing to comply with an order to remove potentially racist clauses from his party's constitution. In December Mr Griffin fought off an attempt to have him declared guilty of contempt of court at the High Court – which rejected the EHRC's attempt to seize the party's assets. Costs were awarded to the BNP but deputy leader Simon Darby said the battle had affected its ability to recruit members and had cost a huge amount in legal fees which had yet to be reimbursed.
Mr Darby said: "Unlike the Labour Party we cannot afford to be £19m in debt and we have had to cut our cloth accordingly." He said the unsavoury postings could be fakes to discredit the party.
'BNP postings' on facebook
* "7/7 – keep trying ya raghead b*****ds. This is our country our England our rules. Time2 packup and get the f**k out of dodge."
* "Fly your flag! no excuses. We stock them. £5 to p**s off your Muslim neigbours off big style. What a f*****g bargain."
* "Going to the polling station was a day out for the lazy African population as they don't work."
* "Unless we stand up and are counted then it's bye bye England."
The Independent by Oliver Wright
The BNP was last night accused of turning to "a hardcore group of neo-Nazis and racists" to stand as candidates in next month's local elections.
The anti-BNP campaign group Hope not Hate said it had compiled a dossier of extremist postings of candidates standing on 5 May, either in council elections or those to the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly. Among the postings the group collected from Facebook pages were:
* One BNP candidate in the North of England who posted on his Facebook page a mock advert for the gas Zyklon B – used in the Nazi extermination chambers of the Second World War – captioned, "Try Zyklon B. It's a gas!"
* One candidate urges his followers to "Stamp out diseases today. Spray pakis and poofs with hydrochloric acid".
* An activist in Wales, who has a photograph of his endorsement by BNP leader Nick Griffin on his Facebook page. Underneath it reads: "My grandfather was killed in Auschwitz. Apparently he got p****d and fell out of the watchtower!"
The candidate also posted, "Just popped round to see my Muslim neighbour's new baby. She asked me if I wanted to wind it but that seemed a bit extreme so I gave it a dead leg instead."
* A woman, describing herself as a "a big supporter of the BNP leader Nick Griffin", responded to a protest by Muslims Against The Crusades by saying: "They should all be burned."
* Another candidate posting about his arrest for "an out of date bus ticket", says: "They [police] have just made me hate them even more. From now on I will be celebrating the death of serving police officers when they are announced on the news. May sound a bit extreme but I hate them that much." He also posted that Labour's newly elected MP for Barnsley Central, Dan Jarvis, a former officer in the Parachute Regiment, "should have been shot from behind while facing the enemy".
Overall the BNP will be fielding just over 200 candidates in next month's elections – nearly 500 fewer than the in 2007. It said it "was having to cut its cloth" because of the amount of money it had had to spend defending a legal action against the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).
Hope not Hate said: "As his party crumbles, Nick Griffin has been forced to turn to what even by BNP standards, is a hard core of neo-Nazis and racists. These are not just activists, but people Griffin is putting forward as candidates for elected public office. They are literally the best the BNP now has to offer."
Hope not Hate, which is funded by the trades union movement, said the party had become hopelessly split – with many members defecting to the English Democrats and the breakaway party British Freedom Party.
The BNP has been engaged in a long-running court battle with the EHRC over its policy of restricting membership to "indigenous British people". It scrapped the rule but the Commission accused Mr Griffin of failing to comply with an order to remove potentially racist clauses from his party's constitution. In December Mr Griffin fought off an attempt to have him declared guilty of contempt of court at the High Court – which rejected the EHRC's attempt to seize the party's assets. Costs were awarded to the BNP but deputy leader Simon Darby said the battle had affected its ability to recruit members and had cost a huge amount in legal fees which had yet to be reimbursed.
Mr Darby said: "Unlike the Labour Party we cannot afford to be £19m in debt and we have had to cut our cloth accordingly." He said the unsavoury postings could be fakes to discredit the party.
'BNP postings' on facebook
* "7/7 – keep trying ya raghead b*****ds. This is our country our England our rules. Time2 packup and get the f**k out of dodge."
* "Fly your flag! no excuses. We stock them. £5 to p**s off your Muslim neigbours off big style. What a f*****g bargain."
* "Going to the polling station was a day out for the lazy African population as they don't work."
* "Unless we stand up and are counted then it's bye bye England."
Thursday, 14 April 2011
A good reason to vote "Yes"
According to research undertaken by ippr the alternative vote system would not hand undue influence to the BNP. Their study looked at results in all constituencies if the last election had been run under AV. Researchers at the think-tank ran a series of tests on two different facets of the claim by those who oppose the move to AV that the BNP would be able to "pick a winner". IPPR looked at whether there could be a mass transfer of BNP supporters' votes pushing one candidate over the 50% threshold, and that BNP voters' second preferences could overturn a favourite and help someone placed second or even third to come first. The research comes as both the “No” and “Yes” campaigns mark the four-week countdown to the AV referendum. The “No” campaign have previously aired concerns that a change in the voting system would boost minority parties, with their campaign director, Matthew Elliott, saying recently AV would "[give] BNP supporters more power at the ballot box". In an AV system, voters rank candidates instead of voting only for their chosen one. If no single candidate has secured 50% of the vote immediately, the candidate who has received fewest first preference votes is eliminated and the second preferences of their voters are redistributed to other candidates. The “No” campaign fears the second preferences of those eliminated – likely to be those who back minority parties – could go on to have profound effects further down the reallocation process. They have published a list of 35 seats in which the BNP's share of the vote was greater than the winner's margin of victory. Now researchers have looked at this assertion in two ways. They show there to be 56 seats where the share of the BNP vote exceeds the gap between the first-placed candidate and the 50% threshold they need to cross and where, if all BNP supporters transferred their second preferences as a bloc, it could help the lead candidate win. They then showed that the 2010 British election survey – which asked 13,356 people to take part in a mock election run under their AV system – found the number of seats where the second preference of those voting BNP push a winning candidate over the 50% threshold fell to 25. However, the IPPR researchers demonstrated that in all 25 seats the second preferences of the BNP are not "decisive" and the second preferences of others just as critical. They explain that in the 25, the first-placed candidate is within "spitting distance" of the finishing line and the average gap between the first and second placed candidate is 24.52%, which they say is "larger than the share of the vote of any third-placed candidate whose votes would be needed to change the result". "In other words there is no chance that BNP second preference votes could alter the outcome in any of these seats. In all of them the winner on first preferences will be the winner once votes have been reallocated in subsequent rounds irrespective of the role played by BNP votes." The IPPR researchers also dissected the idea that BNP voters could change the balance of power in constituencies by pushing a second or third place candidate into first place and over the 50% threshold on the back of its transferred votes. Results from the 2010 election show that there is not one constituency where the BNP vote share is larger than the margin between 50% and that received by the runner-up. Their researchers say: "Given the marginality and distance from 50% for both the first and second placed candidates it is true that BNP supporters' second or third preferences will be counted in the 35 seats listed by the 'No to AV' campaign. "However, the BNP vote is still very small in each of these seats, averaging a vote share of just 4.5% – yet the average distance from 50% for the winning candidate is 11.3% and 14.2% for the runner-up. Even if we assume all BNP preferences go to a single candidate (which they wouldn't) they would still require more than twice the number of BNP supporters to win under AV. BNP voters cannot therefore single-handedly change a result." The IPPR details some high profile cases: Barking The IPPR said: “The constituency [in] which the BNP has its highest proportion in vote share, it is a clear safe seat for Labour achieving over 50% of all votes and very unlikely requiring the need for 2nd preferences. All additional party votes summed – including the Liberal Democrats – would not be enough to elect the Conservative runner-up”. Morley and Outwood IPPR argued: "The BNP additional vote preferences would be counted but as the race is highly marginal – both winner and runner-up maintaining votes shares in the mid-30s – the race will be decided by the 16.76% Liberal Democrat supporters whose second preferences are more likely to go to Labour than the Conservatives." Burnley On this constituency ippr argued: "The race is between Labour and the Liberal Democrats. The BNP additional vote preferences will likely be counted but the 16.61% of Conservative voters will be the decisive group who strongly favour the Liberal Democrats over Labour thus, likely retaining the seat in Liberal Democrat hands". The “No” campaign maintain that BNP voters will still have undue influence in any AV election compared with those who vote for one of the three main parties. Recent research by them showed that if the 2010 general election had been run under AV, in 70% of seats those who backed the three main parties would have been unlikely to get a second vote. Launching that research, Matthew Elliott said that in some constituencies supporters of the BNP would have had their preferences counted six times before a winner was declared. All of which assumes that those second, third, fourth and fifth preferences would go to other extremist parties. The reality is the far right are extremely sectarian and many BNP voters would rather vote Labour or Conservative than put their second vote with an NF candidate. Given this, there seems little to worry about regarding the distribution of BNP supporter second preferences. With a few weeks to go the “No” campaign has been insipid and fundamentally dishonest. They have so failed to answer the claims made by the “Yes” campaign that a move to AV would produce a fairer electoral system. This blog has been reluctant to support the “Yes” campaign because of my passionate belief that the correct voting system would have been the Single Transferrable Vote STV). This is not going to happen, so we must make full use of the opportunity to dump the defunct First Passed The Post system and change it to a more democratic approach that allows voters the opportunity to elect members of parliament who more fully represent the views of the majority. Given the options, the Alternative Vote is the only way forward and I would urge readers to vote “Yes” on May 5th
Saturday, 9 April 2011
BNP election candidate arrested over Qur'an burning
The Observer by Mark Townsend | Saturday, 9 April 2011
A senior member of the BNP who burned a copy of the Qur'an in his garden has been arrested.
Footage of the burning shows Sion Owens, 40, from south Wales and a candidate for the forthcoming Welsh Assembly elections, soaking the Qur'an in kerosene and setting fire to it. A video clip of the act was leaked to the Observer and passed immediately to South Wales police, provoked fierce criticism from the government.
Owens, who has previously stood for a council seat, was last Tuesday unveiled by the BNP as a candidate for next month's assembly elections. Several photographs place him alongside party leader Nick Griffin, including one showing the pair embracing during a party conference.
Owens was arrested within hours of police receiving the video. A second person, believed to have filmed the Qur'an burning, is also in police custody. It is unclear when the incident took place, but the five-minute footage is already understood to have been circulated to extremists. There is no evidence that Griffin was aware of the film.
When Jones went ahead with his "punishment" of the Qur'an on 20 March it was initially largely ignored until it was streamed on the internet and preserved on YouTube.
The footage of the burning in Britain clearly identifies Owens, who is wearing a "Whitelaw No Surrender" T-shirt. The film starts with the Qur'an lying in a Quality Street tin before Owens begins dousing the holy book in flammable liquid and then setting fire to it. The camera zooms in as the Qur'an burns.
Saqed Mueen of the international security thinktank, the Royal United Services Institute, described the act as proof of the "globalisation of outrageous stunts". Concern over Islamophobic provocation among far-right elements is epitomised by the rise of the English Defence League, which was founded in 2009 and claims to have thousands of members in scores of regional branches.
The EDL's rise coincides with the decline of the BNP as a political force, evident during last year's poor general election performance. Although Griffin's party had 338 candidates in the parliamentary elections, a record number for a far-right party in Britain, its share of the vote in key seats fell.
The BNP fared little better in the council elections, failing in its concerted attempt to win control of Barking and Dagenham council and losing all but two of its 28 wards.
The news that a senior BNP figure has been arrested after a film showing him burning the Qur'an will only discredit the party further, according to anti-fascist campaigners.
Photographs show Owens at a Welsh Defence League demonstration with a group of alleged Nazis including Wayne Baldwin, who has been pictured posing in front of a swastika flag. The Observer has also been passed images that show Owens's face apparently superimposed on Hitler's body.
Owens was officially announced last week as the BNP's number three candidate for the South Wales West constituency of the Welsh assembly.
In 2008 he stood for the BNP in council elections, polling almost a fifth of votes in his ward but finishing last out of three candidates. His campaign posters at the time show him standing on a ticket against "mass immigration, enforced multiculturalism, political correctness".
Although the BNP announced a record number of candidates for the Welsh assembly elections last week, anti-fascist groups maintain the party is a fading force, claiming that it has struggled to field candidates in the forthcoming local elections in areas that used to be target seats.
A senior member of the BNP who burned a copy of the Qur'an in his garden has been arrested.
Footage of the burning shows Sion Owens, 40, from south Wales and a candidate for the forthcoming Welsh Assembly elections, soaking the Qur'an in kerosene and setting fire to it. A video clip of the act was leaked to the Observer and passed immediately to South Wales police, provoked fierce criticism from the government.
Owens, who has previously stood for a council seat, was last Tuesday unveiled by the BNP as a candidate for next month's assembly elections. Several photographs place him alongside party leader Nick Griffin, including one showing the pair embracing during a party conference.
Owens was arrested within hours of police receiving the video. A second person, believed to have filmed the Qur'an burning, is also in police custody. It is unclear when the incident took place, but the five-minute footage is already understood to have been circulated to extremists. There is no evidence that Griffin was aware of the film.
When Jones went ahead with his "punishment" of the Qur'an on 20 March it was initially largely ignored until it was streamed on the internet and preserved on YouTube.
The footage of the burning in Britain clearly identifies Owens, who is wearing a "Whitelaw No Surrender" T-shirt. The film starts with the Qur'an lying in a Quality Street tin before Owens begins dousing the holy book in flammable liquid and then setting fire to it. The camera zooms in as the Qur'an burns.
Saqed Mueen of the international security thinktank, the Royal United Services Institute, described the act as proof of the "globalisation of outrageous stunts". Concern over Islamophobic provocation among far-right elements is epitomised by the rise of the English Defence League, which was founded in 2009 and claims to have thousands of members in scores of regional branches.
The EDL's rise coincides with the decline of the BNP as a political force, evident during last year's poor general election performance. Although Griffin's party had 338 candidates in the parliamentary elections, a record number for a far-right party in Britain, its share of the vote in key seats fell.
The BNP fared little better in the council elections, failing in its concerted attempt to win control of Barking and Dagenham council and losing all but two of its 28 wards.
The news that a senior BNP figure has been arrested after a film showing him burning the Qur'an will only discredit the party further, according to anti-fascist campaigners.
Photographs show Owens at a Welsh Defence League demonstration with a group of alleged Nazis including Wayne Baldwin, who has been pictured posing in front of a swastika flag. The Observer has also been passed images that show Owens's face apparently superimposed on Hitler's body.
Owens was officially announced last week as the BNP's number three candidate for the South Wales West constituency of the Welsh assembly.
In 2008 he stood for the BNP in council elections, polling almost a fifth of votes in his ward but finishing last out of three candidates. His campaign posters at the time show him standing on a ticket against "mass immigration, enforced multiculturalism, political correctness".
Although the BNP announced a record number of candidates for the Welsh assembly elections last week, anti-fascist groups maintain the party is a fading force, claiming that it has struggled to field candidates in the forthcoming local elections in areas that used to be target seats.
Wednesday, 6 April 2011
Jenny Griffin is a busy girl
On 26 March, Clive Jefferson, the hapless BNP national elections officer announced on the BNP website that the local elections campaign was “hotting up” and, in an effort to chivvy along other activists, claimed that his patch, North West Cumbria, was going to stand 15 candidates “and counting” in Copeland and 15 candidates “and counting” in Allerdale.
“This year’s elections have a different feel to them. There are no unrealistic expectations,” claimed Jefferson. “There are a lot of new people coming forward eager to pin the British National Party heart to their chests,” he boasted. “People have worked quietly but systematically over the last year, and there is a feeling of real excitement in the active groups who are fielding big slates in 2011 … Cumbria has thrown the challenge down. Which region is going to beat the Cumbrian gambit of 30 seats?”
The BNP faithful lapped it up.
There appears to have been a problem though. Jefferson’s efforts to whip his colleagues into a frenzy of excitement were not based on fact. Indeed, when nominations closed it was revealed that there were only four candidates standing in Copeland which means that a number of BNP branches have managed to beat Clive Jefferson’s big push hands down.
There was little respite for Jefferson in Allerdale either where, despite claiming he had 15 candidates “and counting”, he could, at the end of the day, only muster six. And, what happened to their mayoral candidate for Middlesborough? He or she is also a no-show.
Two of the candidates were Jennifer Matthys, the daughter of Nick Griffin, and her husband, Angus. Angus is best remembered as the man who had to wear rubber gloves to open the BNP's post when he worked with Jenny at the BNP's Belfast office. Both are standing as candidates for the BNP in Allerdale.
But Jenny will be particularly busy come election day. She is standing on the Welsh Assembly regional list for South Wales East (fourth on the list) on the same day. And now we hear she's also standing in Scotland, Mid Scotland and Fife region, while husband Angus is also standing in Glasow, on the regional list! An unlikely proposition I know, but one wonders how they will divide their time between so many different countries should they get elected? Obviously, given their past there it's no surprise that neither made it onto the list for Northern Ireland.
“This year’s elections have a different feel to them. There are no unrealistic expectations,” claimed Jefferson. “There are a lot of new people coming forward eager to pin the British National Party heart to their chests,” he boasted. “People have worked quietly but systematically over the last year, and there is a feeling of real excitement in the active groups who are fielding big slates in 2011 … Cumbria has thrown the challenge down. Which region is going to beat the Cumbrian gambit of 30 seats?”
The BNP faithful lapped it up.
There appears to have been a problem though. Jefferson’s efforts to whip his colleagues into a frenzy of excitement were not based on fact. Indeed, when nominations closed it was revealed that there were only four candidates standing in Copeland which means that a number of BNP branches have managed to beat Clive Jefferson’s big push hands down.
There was little respite for Jefferson in Allerdale either where, despite claiming he had 15 candidates “and counting”, he could, at the end of the day, only muster six. And, what happened to their mayoral candidate for Middlesborough? He or she is also a no-show.
Two of the candidates were Jennifer Matthys, the daughter of Nick Griffin, and her husband, Angus. Angus is best remembered as the man who had to wear rubber gloves to open the BNP's post when he worked with Jenny at the BNP's Belfast office. Both are standing as candidates for the BNP in Allerdale.
But Jenny will be particularly busy come election day. She is standing on the Welsh Assembly regional list for South Wales East (fourth on the list) on the same day. And now we hear she's also standing in Scotland, Mid Scotland and Fife region, while husband Angus is also standing in Glasow, on the regional list! An unlikely proposition I know, but one wonders how they will divide their time between so many different countries should they get elected? Obviously, given their past there it's no surprise that neither made it onto the list for Northern Ireland.
Tuesday, 29 March 2011
From bleak mid-winter to a cold Spring
Reports yesterday indicated the UK economy shrank by less than previously thought in the last three months of 2010 and that, according to fresh data from the Office for National Statistics, gross domestic product (GDP) slipped by 0.5% in the period. Its initial estimate for the quarter suggested that the economy had contracted by 0.5% - with heavy snow blamed for the slump. The 0.5% fall is the largest quarterly contraction since the second quarter of 2009. At the same time as the economy was shrinking, unsecured debt rose by £768m in February, driven by an increase in personal loans and overdrafts, whilst the number of remortgaging loans approved stood at 35,725 in February, the Bank's figures show. This was up from 33,972 the previous month, slightly up on a previous high in November, and higher than the average of the previous six months of 31,674. What does this tell us? Well what it indicates is that more and more people are finding it hard to live within their means. Rising prices and Government cut backs mean nearly 50% of mums say they'll be forced to use savings, earmarked for their family's financial future, to cover household bills over the coming year according to research from Family Investments. The research revealed a staggering 47% of mothers will be cutting their family savings by nearly £400 and channelling the cash into covering their day to day living expenses. And in order to 'balance the books' they will be slashing savings in three ways. Firstly short term savings, typically the money normally saved in instant access accounts, (for this summer's holiday or emergency car repairs); this will be cut by £240 a year. Then there are cuts to the kids' savings by £60 a year; and parents will also be sacrificing their pension savings, which for nearly 20% of us average around £160 a month, in order to boost the household piggy bank. This means a combined total of over £1 billion will be cut from family savings across the country as households struggle to meet spiralling costs on everything from food and petrol to energy bills. And it's those energy bills that are creating the biggest headache; up around £37 a month, with over three quarters of adults worried about how they'll pay them. Over one third of us worry about covering the cost of that weekly supermarket bill which has gone up faster than the rate of inflation, according to research from investment bank UBS, adding another £35 a month to our household spending. And filling the car for the daily school run costs more too; with petrol prices hitting a new record high now topping £6 a gallon, and with the current situation in Libya and the Middle East worsening it means we're unlikely to see pump prices slashed in the near future. For many, things are only going to get worse. Each day we are hearing about redundancies. 1. Sheffield Council are planning 273 redundancies; 2. RAF are predicting 11,000 redundancies 3. Hampshire County Council will lose 1,200 jobs 4. London Midland will lose 1,200 jobs 5. Warwickshire County Council will shed 1,800 jobs 6. Meanwhile in the Royal Mail, two London mail centres could close as part of a Royal Mail restructuring plan, which puts over 700 workers and 1,000 managerial jobs on the chopping block. A further 1,700 head-office posts could go in a future review. 7. Northern Rock is to make 680 more redundancies this year – meaning nearly 4,000 will have been axed since its crash in 2007. The list just goes on and on and on. And what is Cameron’s solution? A nothing budget that will do little to stimulate growth. As for building business? Well Citizen Dave had this to say: "This government is backing small firms, it's getting behind the start-ups, it's getting behind the doers and the grafters who are going to get our economy moving and create the jobs and the wealth and the opportunity that we need." 
Pretty words Dave, but where is the evidence? You’ve taken away the Regional Development Agencies, you’ve taken away superb organisations like the West Midlands Observatory … and the other observatories around the country, you have done nothing to encourage the construction industry which contracted 2.3% last month alone. Even the service sector – noted for being a substantial employer throughout the country experienced hardships, with a 0.6% contraction last month. What will it take to knock into Citizen Dave, the people’s toff’s head the fundamental notion that is strategy just isn’t working and it is hurting people. 
The answer may be simple. On May 5th the people will have the opportunity to go to the polls and voice their discontent. In that election I urge every voter to vote for the candidate best able to knock out the sitting Tory or Lib Dem councillor. In wards where the Labour candidate has the highest chance, vote Labour. But if the Green, or Independent candidate is better positioned to win, then vote strategically. Naturally I draw the line on asking anyone to vote BNP or for any of the neo-fascist parties that will put themselves up in May. If we can force Cameron to face a loss of over 1,000 councillors and the loss of all seats in the Welsh and Scottish assemblies he could be forced to review his position. We have a golden opportunity ahead of us – we must not waste it.
Pretty words Dave, but where is the evidence? You’ve taken away the Regional Development Agencies, you’ve taken away superb organisations like the West Midlands Observatory … and the other observatories around the country, you have done nothing to encourage the construction industry which contracted 2.3% last month alone. Even the service sector – noted for being a substantial employer throughout the country experienced hardships, with a 0.6% contraction last month. What will it take to knock into Citizen Dave, the people’s toff’s head the fundamental notion that is strategy just isn’t working and it is hurting people. 
The answer may be simple. On May 5th the people will have the opportunity to go to the polls and voice their discontent. In that election I urge every voter to vote for the candidate best able to knock out the sitting Tory or Lib Dem councillor. In wards where the Labour candidate has the highest chance, vote Labour. But if the Green, or Independent candidate is better positioned to win, then vote strategically. Naturally I draw the line on asking anyone to vote BNP or for any of the neo-fascist parties that will put themselves up in May. If we can force Cameron to face a loss of over 1,000 councillors and the loss of all seats in the Welsh and Scottish assemblies he could be forced to review his position. We have a golden opportunity ahead of us – we must not waste it.
Tuesday, 22 March 2011
Griffin and the BNP - The End is Nigh
Those readers who seldom, if ever visit the Hope not Hate website are missing something of a treat. Recent reports have suggested Nick Griffin’s future as leader of the BNP seems bleaker as each day passes. Last week a number of individuals and companies owed money by the BNP began a class action against the party and Nick Griffin personally. On Sunday night much of the North East came out against their leader.
Below, is an excellent, if long article by Mattew Collins outlining some of the issues facing Griffin and the BNP. Anyone interested in becoming more active in the fight against fascism should really consider becoming involved in a local group of Hope not Hate - the anti-fascist campaign group. Details of the organisation and local groups are available HERE
Below, is an excellent, if long article by Mattew Collins outlining some of the issues facing Griffin and the BNP. Anyone interested in becoming more active in the fight against fascism should really consider becoming involved in a local group of Hope not Hate - the anti-fascist campaign group. Details of the organisation and local groups are available HERE
A tired and rather bloated Nick Griffin has looked better. As a fresh-faced fascist in the 1980s he projected a suave, revolutionary image as he and other middle class and university educated young men took control and strangled the life out of the moribund and predominantly working class National Front. The mood in the party is black. Stalinesque summonses to appear before disciplinary committees arrive randomly and unrelentingly in party organisers’ post. Members are banned even from reading anti-Griffin websites or being in the same room as rebels. Two large meetings in the past month in Yorkshire and the North East have ended with paid-up members publicly calling for Griffin to stand down. In response, those individuals receive summonses to attend further disciplinary meetings. Former high flyers such as Nick Cass and Chris Beverley are the latest to have been suspended; others follow daily. |
Thursday, 3 March 2011
A sour taste after the Barnsley vote
Labour has won the Barnsley by-election and in the process given the LibDems and the Tories a bloody nose – no great surprises there. In the general election last May, Labour managed to achieve 47% of the vote, whereas last night they secured 60.8%. So inevitably, Labour have put out the bunting, blown up the party balloons and hailed the result a tremendous success.
But before they gloat too heavily, a couple of factors need to be considered. Firstly, the poll in the by-election was only 36.5% - not good, even by normal standards. This kind of poor turnout at a time when the Tories and LibDems are incredibly unpopular in working class areas is disturbing and reflects the fact that the vast majority of voters have yet to engage with the Labour message. They may not trust the Tories, but they aren’t too keen on Labour either.
This point is reflected in the fact that 30.95% of the vote yesterday went to lesser known, or minority parties. Of course, there is some sense of the inevitable about this, as voters often feel more able to deliver a protest vote in a by-election. However, it is clear from the results that whilst this may be the case, voters in Barnsley did not opt for left-wing or radical policies.
Indeed, there were no “socialists” or “communists” standing in this election, so voters could either vote Loony Party or for a lesser known right-wing candidate. Why the left failed to put up an alternative candidate remains to be seen, but even if they had, there seems to be a strong likelihood they would have faired badly.
In 2008 Barnsley was hailed as the fascist capital of the world, with the BNP winning quite strong support during local council elections, achieving 17.13% of the overall vote. This led Paul White to write in Red Pepper
“In the build up to the recent elections in Barnsley, we distributed both UAF and Hope Not Hate leaflets to a much larger section of the electorate. These were the standard-issue 'Vote Anyone but Nazi' literature, highlighting the Nazi backgrounds and criminal activities of the BNP's leading members and candidates. In addition, we held two rallies in the town centre as part of our 'Reclaim our Town for Democrats' campaign. This was a response to the BNP having had a regular presence in the main shopping precinct for the past few years on a Saturday, with a stall distributing literature and selling their newspaper. On top of all this, we had established a regular Love Music Hate Racism event at a local club in an attempt to bring young people into the campaign, and to raise awareness.
“Despite our best efforts, Barnsley has found itself labelled the fascist capital of Britain, with the BNP achieving its highest percentage of the vote here. Disregarding the factor of the collapse of the Labour vote, it became obvious that simply saying 'don't vote BNP/they're Nazis' plainly hadn't worked - again!”
In the General election BNP polled 8.9% and since then organisations like Hope not Hate has had even more time to trash their fascist ideology. Despite this, the BNP vote has largely held and with local elections coming up in the next couple of months we can be certain Nick Griffin and his stormtroopers will set their sights firmly on certain key wards in the constituency.
The bottom line of this is that despite our best efforts, the far-right are not being beaten. Indeed, it rather looks like they are holding their own, even despite the onslaught coming from Hope not Hate and other anti-fascist organisations. This concerns me, because if we believe we have put across a consistent message to voters and they continue to vote for the far right, then what does that tell us about the electorate?
It suggests that some of the fundamental issues being raised by the BNP are hitting nerves amongst a small group of the electorate and the mainstream parties need to address these concerns. Of course I am not suggesting that Labour, or even the Conservatives should start talking about repatriation, or stopping the flow of asylum seekers. It is to our credit that we have opened our doors and allowed our society to accept these varied and wonderful cultures.
But there is an underlying sense amongst some that in the process we have lost some of our British identity. Here I am reminded of a wonderful tune by the folk band, how of Hands, whose song “Roots” reflected some of the discrepancies between cultures in this country. A typical British pub now is no longer a community centre, it’s a gastro-pub churning out microwaved food. If you plant an English flag in your garden on St George’s Day you are accused of being a member of the English Defence League. Similarly, if you raise the Union Jack on Armistice Day to commemorate soldiers who have died, you are though to be bringing politics into a time of grief.
I could go on, but I am sure by now you have your own examples. So, perhaps the only way to beat the far-right is to take away from them the one thing they have tried to usurp – our love of our national identity. I make no apology for being proud of my Welsh background – and Wales is part of the UK, so I am, by default British. I admit to being a republican, so the notion of Queen and country does little for me, but the hairs do go up on the back of my neck when I see Morris dancers, or thousands of vets marching passed the cenotaph on a cold November morning.
Does that make me a right-winger? No, it makes me a hardline socialist who wants the best for this country and wants us to reclaim our culture. I want to see a society where there is no place for the intolerance and bigotry of the far right. And I want a country where men and women of different views, different beliefs and assorted attitudes live in harmony, mutually accepting that all are welcome and all are equal.
Is that really so bad?
But before they gloat too heavily, a couple of factors need to be considered. Firstly, the poll in the by-election was only 36.5% - not good, even by normal standards. This kind of poor turnout at a time when the Tories and LibDems are incredibly unpopular in working class areas is disturbing and reflects the fact that the vast majority of voters have yet to engage with the Labour message. They may not trust the Tories, but they aren’t too keen on Labour either.
This point is reflected in the fact that 30.95% of the vote yesterday went to lesser known, or minority parties. Of course, there is some sense of the inevitable about this, as voters often feel more able to deliver a protest vote in a by-election. However, it is clear from the results that whilst this may be the case, voters in Barnsley did not opt for left-wing or radical policies.
Indeed, there were no “socialists” or “communists” standing in this election, so voters could either vote Loony Party or for a lesser known right-wing candidate. Why the left failed to put up an alternative candidate remains to be seen, but even if they had, there seems to be a strong likelihood they would have faired badly.
In 2008 Barnsley was hailed as the fascist capital of the world, with the BNP winning quite strong support during local council elections, achieving 17.13% of the overall vote. This led Paul White to write in Red Pepper
“In the build up to the recent elections in Barnsley, we distributed both UAF and Hope Not Hate leaflets to a much larger section of the electorate. These were the standard-issue 'Vote Anyone but Nazi' literature, highlighting the Nazi backgrounds and criminal activities of the BNP's leading members and candidates. In addition, we held two rallies in the town centre as part of our 'Reclaim our Town for Democrats' campaign. This was a response to the BNP having had a regular presence in the main shopping precinct for the past few years on a Saturday, with a stall distributing literature and selling their newspaper. On top of all this, we had established a regular Love Music Hate Racism event at a local club in an attempt to bring young people into the campaign, and to raise awareness.
“Despite our best efforts, Barnsley has found itself labelled the fascist capital of Britain, with the BNP achieving its highest percentage of the vote here. Disregarding the factor of the collapse of the Labour vote, it became obvious that simply saying 'don't vote BNP/they're Nazis' plainly hadn't worked - again!”
In the General election BNP polled 8.9% and since then organisations like Hope not Hate has had even more time to trash their fascist ideology. Despite this, the BNP vote has largely held and with local elections coming up in the next couple of months we can be certain Nick Griffin and his stormtroopers will set their sights firmly on certain key wards in the constituency.
The bottom line of this is that despite our best efforts, the far-right are not being beaten. Indeed, it rather looks like they are holding their own, even despite the onslaught coming from Hope not Hate and other anti-fascist organisations. This concerns me, because if we believe we have put across a consistent message to voters and they continue to vote for the far right, then what does that tell us about the electorate?It suggests that some of the fundamental issues being raised by the BNP are hitting nerves amongst a small group of the electorate and the mainstream parties need to address these concerns. Of course I am not suggesting that Labour, or even the Conservatives should start talking about repatriation, or stopping the flow of asylum seekers. It is to our credit that we have opened our doors and allowed our society to accept these varied and wonderful cultures.
But there is an underlying sense amongst some that in the process we have lost some of our British identity. Here I am reminded of a wonderful tune by the folk band, how of Hands, whose song “Roots” reflected some of the discrepancies between cultures in this country. A typical British pub now is no longer a community centre, it’s a gastro-pub churning out microwaved food. If you plant an English flag in your garden on St George’s Day you are accused of being a member of the English Defence League. Similarly, if you raise the Union Jack on Armistice Day to commemorate soldiers who have died, you are though to be bringing politics into a time of grief.
I could go on, but I am sure by now you have your own examples. So, perhaps the only way to beat the far-right is to take away from them the one thing they have tried to usurp – our love of our national identity. I make no apology for being proud of my Welsh background – and Wales is part of the UK, so I am, by default British. I admit to being a republican, so the notion of Queen and country does little for me, but the hairs do go up on the back of my neck when I see Morris dancers, or thousands of vets marching passed the cenotaph on a cold November morning.
Does that make me a right-winger? No, it makes me a hardline socialist who wants the best for this country and wants us to reclaim our culture. I want to see a society where there is no place for the intolerance and bigotry of the far right. And I want a country where men and women of different views, different beliefs and assorted attitudes live in harmony, mutually accepting that all are welcome and all are equal.
Is that really so bad?
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