UKIP Newsletter
The UKIP campaign in Corby continues to go well and we are getting a great reaction on the doorstep. The office is now open at 7 New Post Office Square, Corby, NN17 1PB. This means that activists no longer need to wait for the next Action Day to come along and help out – come along any time, although we would appreciate it if you phone Lisa on 07890 110225 in advance to help with our planning.
With by-elections it's important to remember that traditional thinking needs to go out of the window – the worst mistake that we could possibly make is to wait until the by-election has actually been called! Louise Mensch has already 'resigned' (been appointed as Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead) so we know that there will be a by-election. The campaign is now essentially a race – can we get our message across before the other parties? Momentum is also key – we need to be seen as a Party that has the chance to do very well in the election and included in all of the media coverage. This won't happen if we wait until the last minute.
Even worse, if we wait too long there's a risk that our message won't be heard at all. During the last few weeks of a by-election campaign frustrated voters have already had dozens of pieces of literature put through their doors and can switch off. The best advice? If you can get to Corby, go as soon as you can!
Some members have asked me what will be happening in the other Parliamentary by-elections which are due to take place on the same day in November. By-elections are also expected in Manchester and Wales, and whilst Corby is clearly the target seat we do expect to select candidates for the other Parliamentary by-elections.
UKIP NEC member Louise Bours takes 27% in Council by-election
Louise Bours took 524 votes and 27% of the vote in Congleton East at a Council by-election last night, finishing just 90 votes short of winning in a ward which had not been contested by UKIP before. The full results were as follows:
Conservative 614
Labour 533
Louise Bours - UKIP 524
Liberal Democrat 340
Gerard Batten comment in today's Daily Express
THE big problem with immigration is in sheer scale and numbers. The current level is simply unsustainable. England is one of the most densely populated countries in the world. Our transport system, roads, health service, schools and public services are buckling under the unremitting tide of new people.
Before the General Election in 2010 the Tories promised to slow the rate of immigration to a few tens of thousands a year. Even this level would only return us to the situation in the mid-1980s. The Coalition has utterly failed to deliver any significant reduction and shows no sign of seriously addressing the problem. Although the level of net population gain has decreased slightly, the Office for National Statistics describes this as "not a statistically significant difference". Parliament long ago made itself powerless to refuse entry to EU citizens, all of whom have an automatic right of entry, but 55 per cent of migrants come from outside the EU. The Government could do something about this if it had the will to do so.
The Labour Government engineered mass immigration in order to create an irreversible "multicultural society". The ONS figures show that 25 per cent of all births in England and Wales are to foreign-born mothers. In London that figure rises to almost 57 per cent. Has any of this benefited the British people? The effect of mass immigration has been to drive wages and living standards down for those at the lower end of the economic ladder and to drive property prices up beyond the reach of their children.
Illegal immigrants should be deported where and when identified; work permits should only be granted where there is a genuine vacancy that cannot be filled by a British citizen; foreign students must leave when their visas expire or face a long ban on re-entry; and we must leave the EU to regain control of who can and cannot enter our country.
Euro collapse?
The Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico has told reporters that he sees the euro as having a 50% chance of surviving, and a 50% chance of splitting. Of course, the euro 'should' split but so much credibility has been gambled on the euro that I am not yet allowing myself to get carried away with the thought that the euro is on the point of implosion. These things take time.
When the euro was first launched, our standard argument was that to join a currency union which required different countries to share the same interest rates was absolute folly. One-size-fits-all simply could not work, and therefore it would be utter madness for the UK to join such a currency union. Indeed, for a single currency to have any chance of survival there would be the need to treat the entire eurozone as though it were a single country and for money to be moved about at the whim of the eurozone with all financial sovereignty being removed.
We argued of course that such a state of affairs would be completely unacceptable, but the pro-euro lobby kept promising that we could have the euro without major external control of our economy. It was clear from the outset that the idea of a single currency without huge central control was economic naivete at best.
It's remarkable really that there were just two economic arguments in favour of joining the euro: saving money on currency exchange, and 'access' to a strong currency. The first argument was true but pitifully small when compared to the overall issues affecting the whole economy. No-one would try to sell a brand new car with the chief selling point being a £5 Marks & Spencers voucher as an inducement to buy, yet the pro-euro camp did the equivalent of that. The second argument – access to a strong currency – can now be seen in its true light. The pound was always a strong currency; the euro untried and untested.
History tells us that fixed exchange rates don't work. The Exchange Rate Mechanism ('the euro without the notes and coins') devastated the British economy in the early 1990s as 100,000 businesses went bankrupt and unemployment doubled. We were forced to leave. Earlier, the Bretton Woods formula suffered similar collapse. Even at the time of the euro's launch, Argentina was pegging its currency to the dollar and suffering the consequences. Citizens were not allowed to withdraw more than $1,000 a month from their bank accounts. When Argentina was eventually forced to allow its currency to float, the peso devalued overnight – the 'cost' of a dollar went from 1 peso to 1.40 overnight, and even hit 4 pesos soon after.
I wonder whether European leaders could really have failed to see that at the time. Perhaps the intention all along was to take the euro to this point; economically a crisis had to happen eventually. The only surprise was that it took so long. The euro was never an economic project, although it was packaged as such. It was a political project designed by those who wanted 'more Europe' and moves towards, in effect, a United States of Europe. As a political project, European leaders have shown that they are committed to keeping the euro running – even when it is not in their own countries' interests to do so. Whilst politicians are prepared to go to any lengths to keep the euro afloat, I expect to see a lot more hardship for the people of Europe before they are ready to recognise that the demise of the euro would actually be in the best interests of their own countries.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
The Party Conference this year will take place on Friday 21st and Saturday 22nd September, with a Training Day and other events also scheduled for Thursday 20th. The theme of the Conference will be 'Beyond the EU – the Way Ahead'. Tickets are selling well, but we need more members to sign up. At a time when the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats are said to be about to have record low attendances at their Conferences, what better way to show the media that UKIP is an up and coming Party than to have our venue packed to the rafters? Please book online today at www.ukip.org if you are able to attend. Steve Crowther has released more details of what will be happening at Conference, featured later in this newsletter.
If you are planning to travel a long way to Birmingham, why not combine the trip with a visit to the Corby by-election campaign on the Sunday after Conference (or the Wednesday before)? Getting more activists to the campaign will be absolutely critical to our chances of success – with indications already that we are taking votes in both Labour and Conservative areas of the constituency, could this be our best Westminster election result ever?
More UKIP publicity in the Daily Express
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP was mentioned in the print copy of yesterday's Daily Express, with the comment that he pointed out just 11 of the 61 Cabinet and Shadow Cabinet members have any experience working in the private sector. At least 24 had never held a proper job and 20 had worked for lobbyists or campaign groups.
On Monday, it was UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP who featured in the Express – after pointing out that we are still giving foreign aid of £280 million to India, whose economy grew by over £1 billion in just three months. Paul Nuttall was quoted as saying "India's unexpected increase in growth amounts to almost three times what the UK gives them in aid. Surely this just underlines why we have to cut our aid to them. They are not a charity case."
UKIP Chairman Steve Crowther releases details of this year's Conference
The EU is in crisis, the Euro suffering a long slow death, and all over Europe political movements are arising to challenge the undemocratic European Project. But what comes next? What does the future hold for a UK, and a Europe, freed from the shackles of the 'great harmonisation'? In a Conference speaker line-up of unprecedented quality, we will hear from some of the most influential economists and politicians, on their vision for the future.
The speakers will include.....
Two Treasury advisers
This year we have not just one, but two of the legendary 'Wise Men', former advisers to the Treasury and among the country's leading economists.
ROGER BOOTLE – THE FUTURE OF THE EURO Fri 15.00
Winner of the Wolfson Prize for Economics, the world's leading award after the Nobel Prize, Roger Bootle is recognised globally as the expert on the future of the Euro, the Eurozone and how countries can escape it.
TIM CONGDON – BETTER OFF OUT Fri 14.00
More jobs, more growth, lower debts, rising prosperity: what will life be like for the UK after we throw off the EU straitjacket? Prof Tim Congdon has spent ayear working on the figures, to unveil a startlingly different outlook from the one the Europhiles predict.
Two 'dangerous men'
Two of our speakers this year have recently featured in international lists – demonstrating their importance in the shaping of Europe's future.
TIMO SOINI – TRUE FINNS LEADER Fri 14.40
One of the '13 People Who are Ruining the World's Economy' according to a recent media report, Timo is at the forefront of opposition to the Euro bail-out policy, within the Eurozone itself.
NIGEL FARAGE – 'LEADER OF THE OPPOSITION' Fri 11.45
One of the '10 Most Dangerous People in Europe' (which also featured Timo), Nigel is now regarded not just in the UK and Europe, but globally, as the voice of opposition to the failed European Project.
Two challengers of orthodoxy
Religion and politics are inextricably – and potently – linked. This year we will hear from two outspoken people who have made a stand.
MAGDI ALLAM MEP – FROM ISLAM TO CHRISTIANITY Fri 10.40
An Egyptian-born journalist now representing an Italian constituency in the European Parliament, Magdi Allam converted from Islam to Christianity. Now a member of the EFD, he's uniquely placed to give insight into the convergence of religion and politics in the new Europe.
REVEREND DR PETER MULLEN Sat 10.45
One of the most outspoken Anglican priests of our time, the former Chaplain to the Stock Exchange is now the leading blogger for the Daily Telegraph, known for his uncompromising yet intellectually rigorous views on the issues of modern life – and especially politics.
Two giants of the media
The spectacular change in UKIP's fortunes over the past three years has been reflected and driven by the change in the view of the mass media. Two of ours speakers this year exemplify that change.
PATRICK O'FLYNN – NEWSPAPER VISIONARY Fri 15.50
When the history of the UK's exit from the EU are written, one of the milestones will be the Daily Express's emergence as a fully-fledged campaigner for withdrawal. The architect of that policy, Chief Political Commentator Patrick O'Flynn, looks forward at how UKIP can achieve a breakthrough.
MIKE READ – ICON OF TV AND RADIO Fri 10.10
One of the latest national figures to declare publicly for UKIP, former Radio One DJ and BBC TV presenter Mike Read is a seasoned political campaigner, now committed to our cause. He celebrates a golden year for the UK – and UKIP.
Plus the best line-up of UKIP speakers ever assembled
THE RT HON LORD HESKETH former Government Chief Whip
GODFREY BLOOM MEP candidate for Humberside Police Commissioner
ROGER HELMER MEP spokesman on Industry and Energy
MIKE NATTRASS MEP spokesman on Transport
MARTA ANDREASEN MEP spokesman on EU Budget
STUART AGNEW MEP spokesman on Agriculture
GERARD BATTEN MEP spokesman on Home Affairs
STUART WHEELER Party Treasurer
JEFFREY TITFORD former MEP and UKIP President
MARGOT PARKER UKIP candidate in the Corby by-election
LISTER WILSON UKIP Cambridge County Councillor
HARRY ALDRIDGE chairman of Young Independence
and many more, including some surprise guests.
Don't forget to reserve your tickets for:
Chairman's Reception and EuroCrash! The Musical Thur 19.00
Leader's Lunch – meet the guest speakers Fri 12.45
Gala Dinner and Grand Auction Fri 19.30
National Conference – Training Day (Thursday 20th September)
There's something for everyone at this year's new 'third day of Conference'. For the first time we've added a full day of training prior to the main Conference business, 'Super Thursday' will see the launch of our much-anticipated Branch Revival Programme, workshops on key areas of policy and campaigning, and the chance to get onto the Party's Approved Candidates List. Here's the full list of options for Thursday 20 September:
BRANCH REVIVAL PROGRAMME - a full-day programme of 3 sessions, starting at 11.00 and finishing at 5.30.
Session 1 (11.00–12.30): Setting up and running a branch - Legal requirements/Job roles/Branch meetings/Support structure
Session 2 (2.00–3.30): Campaigning workshops - Election campaigns/Political activity/Recruiting new members
Session 3 (4.00–5.30) : Branch development workshops - Fundraising/Membership engagement/Branch auditing
POLICY & SKILLS WORKSHOPS
Health and NHS Policy with Steph McWilliam 11.00–12.30
Financial Regulation Policy with Lucy Bostick 2.00–3.30
Children & Families Policy with Carol Lovatt 4.00–5.30
Social Media: Facebook & Twitter with Michael Heaver 11.00–12.30, 4.00–5.30
Effective Design and Print with Pete Walters of PrintBridge 2.00–3.30
CANDIDATE ASSESSMENT & TRAINING
Candidate Assessment Centres 2-hour sessions starting at 10.00, 1.00 and 4.00
Media Training 2-hour sessions starting at 11.00, 2.00 and 4.00
Public Speaking Training 2-hour sessions starting at 11.00, 2.00 and 4.00
Let us know your preference...decide which sessions you'd most like to attend, and let us know, so we can plan the resources to meet demand:
For Candidate Assessments & Training email partydirector@ukip.org; for Policy & Skills Workshops email training@ukip.org, and for Branch Revival Programme email brp@ukip.org.
Wind farm petition
In previous forum newsletters, a petition on windfarms has been circulated to forum members. However, it may be that newer members might be unaware of this petition on the government e-petitions website. I would encourage anyone who has not yet done so to sign this petition and to get like-minded friends to do the same. The text of the petition is as follows:
PETITION We do not want any more onshore wind turbines/farms in Norfolk or elsewhere in the UK. We appeal to our MPs to represent our views and to vehemently oppose these projects. These plants are an uneconomical and inefficient way to produce electricity and are only pursued by the Government to secure the "green" vote and to keep the EU happy. Locally, they industrialise the landscape, have detrimental health, financial and other effects on peoples lives, destroy wildlife and have a negative impact on tourism. The billions of pounds wasted on these projects should be used in other areas to improve the lot of the British people.
To sign up please go to http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/22958.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
The annual Party Conference will of course be dominating this week's events in UKIP, but before I come to that some members may not yet be aware that Tim Congdon was recently featured on the front page of the Daily Express revealing new figures which show that every household in Britain pays nearly £6,000 a year for our membership of the European Union. These figures are NOT the direct cost of EU membership (which remains far lower than that). They reflect the total cost to Britain of our EU membership, such as the drain on our economy caused by the Single Market, the Common Agricultural and Fisheries policies, demands on the benefits system and EU legislation. The membership fee is of course included in that overall figure.
Professor Congdon said "This study has established that, from an economic standpoint, the case for withdrawal is overwhelming. My conclusion is that we are 10 per cent of GDP, about £150billion a year, worse off because we are a member of the EU instead of being an independent sovereign nation like Norway or Switzerland in our own continent, or like Canada or Australia in the wider English-speaking world." The full article can be found at http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/346141/You-pay-6-000-a-year-to-be-in-EU.
The Corby by-election should not be put on the back burner (why not pop in on your way to or from Conference?) but this week is all about the Party Conference. Please get there if you can (tickets can be booked online at ukip.org). Why not come to EuroCrash! The Musical on Thursday evening at the Town Hall, before the Conference? You could attend the Chairman's Reception at 7.00 and then the musical at 7.45, ticket price £30 to include a glass of fizz, a smoked salmon sandwich and some lemon drizzle cake to keep them going until dinner later. Alternatively, just come for the musical at 7.45 (until 9.00), for £15 on the door. I'm told that it's a really fun performance, and deserves to play to a full house.
Leading Councillor Joins UKIP
Councillor Jonathan Bullock, a member of the Cabinet of Kettering Borough Council and former Conservative Parliamentary and European Candidate, has today resigned from the Conservative Party and joined UKIP.
Cllr Bullock said "After considerable thought over some time I have joined UKIP, as they are articulating the right policies for the future of our country, particularly on Europe, Defence and Home Affairs. I remain committed to the KBC conservative manifesto, of which I was the principal author, and on which I was elected at the Borough Elections in 2011. This manifesto is entirely consistent with UKIP policies, so I will remain serving as a Ward Councillor and will continue to represent my Ward, and the views in that manifesto, at the Council".
"It was a difficult decision to leave a Party of which I have been a member for many years, and for whom I have worked hard over the years. However, the integrity with which UKIP has held to its core convictions and its alignment with my own beliefs has been very influential. I have also been impressed with how the leadership of UKIP has developed UKIP as a party in recent years and its outstanding candidate in the forthcoming Corby By-Election. More and more of my friends and colleagues are turning to UKIP. I will be attending the UKIP conference later this week in Birmingham, and look forward to hearing its very interesting and highly qualified programme of speakers."
Roger Helmer MEP, who joined UKIP earlier in the year, said "We are delighted to have attracted a politician of the calibre of Councillor Bullock to UKIP. I was a candidate alongside him in the 2004 European Elections and I campaigned for him at the 2011 Kettering Borough elections. He will be a great asset to UKIP, which continues to grow both locally in Northamptonshire and throughout the rest of the UK."
Post-Conference Reception
Winston McKenzie is hosting a post-Conference reception with special guests including the Consul General of Pakistan and the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka. The Commonwealth Wine Tasting with champagne and mango reception will be held at the Burlington Hotel, Burlington Arcade, 126 New Street, Birmingham B2 4JQ on Saturday, September 22 from 6-9m.
Tickets for reception, along with open bar and Caribbean buffet, are priced at £32 and available in advance from Marianne Bowness on 07949 32 42 01 or emailmariannebowness@yahoo.co.uk. Urging conference-goers to attend the unique event, Winston said: "It's the perfect way to round off what is going to be a fantastic conference. There will be a selection of great wines from around the Commonwealth to accompany the delicious buffet and should be a brilliant event."
Conference Fringe meetings
In addition to the fringe meetings previously mentioned, Friends of Israel in UKIP will be hosting a fringe meeting on Friday 21st September. At the fringe meeting the rather pro-UKIP Daily Telegraph writer Ed West will be giving a talk followed by Q &A.
The questions 'Do we need economic and monetary reform?' and 'Gay marriage: the great debate' will be held by Young Independence on the Friday and Saturday lunchtimes of Conference respectively.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
It's rare that I send out two forum newsletters with just 24 hours between them, but it is Conference week and there is a lot going on in the Party! The big news of the day has to be the fact that UKIP gains another Lord; our voice in Westminster continues to grow stronger and stronger. More details on that later. With the Party Conference due to start, UKIP can expect more media publicity – and already, UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP has a string of media engagements planned for this week.
Tomorrow (Wednesday) Paul Nuttall will be featuring in a round table debate on Radio 5 Live from midday to 1pm. He will then be on the Daily Politics on Thursday, followed quickly by what promises to be a fascinating debate on The World At One . The debate, entitled 'The Future of UKIP', will be a clash between Paul Nuttall MEP and David Bannerman MEP. On Friday, Paul Nuttall will also be on Any Questions from Stratford-upon-Avon. A number of interviews not to be missed (unless of course you are too busy at the UKIP training day and Party Conference).
The full Party Conference schedule is now available online at http://www.ukip.org/page/conference-schedule. I am told that, contrary to the date given in the last forum newsletter and shown on the schedule, the Friends of Israel in UKIP fringe event with Ed West of the Daily Telegraph will be on the Saturday lunchtime from 12.45pm.
UKIP gains another member of the House of Lords
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage has welcomed former top Conservative Lord Stevens into UKIP, saying "He's a giant of Fleet Street, an immensely respected member of the House of Lords and a huge asset to UKIP and to the cause of Britain's freedom". Lord Stevens said "It's a wrench for me, to say I'm pro-UKIP and effectively anti-Conservative. That's why it's taken me eight years. But I have made up my mind. I'm taking the plunge.
"I had hopes of this Government but I finally got exasperated. My patience is exhausted because I don't think this Government is going to do anything. I delayed this decision because I was hopeful the Government would be more positive on sorting out the problems of Europe. They are just prevaricating. I don't regard it as disloyalty to the Conservative Party. It's loyalty because I'm pointing them in the right direction."
Lord Stevens also commented on the European Union, saying "We can operate perfectly effectively outside the EU. We want the freedom to have a free trade agreement. Our trade outside the EU is increasing more rapidly than within the EU and that's been the case for some time. We have an EU with an ageing and declining population, now in serious economic trouble which we are helping to bail out."
"The bureaucrats in Brussels have nothing better to do than to dream up new regulations. To get the UK economy moving we have to cut regulation and we can't do it under the present regime. We have to reduce immigration, which costs us a fortune, and we can't do that as long as we are part of the EU."
Lord Stevens will address the UKIP Party Conference this week – another reason not to miss out on what promises to be an incredible Party Conference in Birmingham! The other huge positive is the way that the Daily Express welcomed the move, speaking in glowing terms about Lord Stevens' decision. This is one of the most encouraging newspaper articles I have read for a long time, and I commend it to you: http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/346687/TOP-TORY-QUITS-TO-JOIN-UKIP. The Express described the move to UKIP as a 'huge boost' for the campaign to leave the EU.
Nigel Farage: An EU referendum stitch-up?
The British establishment is quite prepared to doctor the record when it suits them - last week's Hillsborough revelations graphically showed that. It can be decades before the truth is dragged out of our political class. There is no subject on which this is truer than Britain's membership of the European Union. Whether it's Whitehall suppressing key papers or British governments of all stripes issuing misleading statements and using weasel words, we now know that the whole truth and key information has long been suppressed.
This matters particularly now, because EU Commission president Barroso has announced that he wants to see a new EU Treaty within two years. This Treaty would be to create a European Federation and would wrest control from the UK of a whole series of powers - powers that Brussels would never relinquish. The polling evidence suggests that over half of us want to leave the EU. Even more want a referendum to give us the chance to have our say. The Daily Express has taken a courageous stand on this great issue, putting enormous pressure on the Government.
And in the end David Cameron is going to have to offer this country a referendum. But I want to make sure that we are asked the right question and I want you to help me. History warns us that this is far from certain to be the case. For my sins I know how the political class operate – and co-operate – in both Brussels and London. They may offer us a referendum but on a question that suits them and is designed to produce the "right" result. I believe they are going to try to repeat an old trick.
To try to help remove the scales from our eyes I am publishing a pamphlet, 'A Referendum Stitch-Up?' into what happened back in the 1970s. In 1975, my parents' generation was led to believe that they were voting to stay part of a "Common Market" or free trade area. They were not. Harold Wilson's government publicly claimed, "no important new policy can be decided in Brussels". But, behind the scenes the Foreign Office had already told it that "Community law" would "prevail over conflicting national legislation".
Both statements could not be true. They were contradictory. We have learnt to our considerable cost, that it was the "censored" one - the one withheld from us - that was accurate. The Conservatives and Liberals of the time co-operated in the deceit. What we were in fact voting for was to remain in what economists call a "customs union". In the EU, being part of a customs union means everything has to be "harmonised", i.e. made uniform. That is what the European Union has been busily doing for decades.
It gives rise to a whole range of laws from environmental regulation via common employment law to unrestricted immigration, with its resultant welfare costs. In the last few days plans have been presented to create a federal state of Europe, with a Common Treasury and a single budget. Alongside this legislative overlordship come the practical costs. In trade we run a deficit of £50 billion with the EU when we run a surplus with the rest of the world.
Europe grows relatively poorer as each new member joins (just wait for Turkey: the coalition and Labour all want to add another 70million people), and becomes more of an economic backwater in terms of world trade as growth switches to such countries as Brazil, China and India.
Worse still, for the privilege of having to implement all these regulations, Britain has to pay the European Union a gross contribution of more than £50million per day. Yet the Prime Minister says we must stay in at any cost. It is clear that the political class is trying to mislead us again. They suggest that a straight "in or out" referendum question should be replaced by a complex question offering a third way: continuing as part of the Single Market without full political union. In short, we are being presented with a recycled version of what we thought we were getting in 1975.
But just like then, there is no third way. My research explains why any apparent renegotiation of membership terms can only be a mirage. With the design of the EU as it is meaningful renegotiation is neither possible nor credible. In fairness to the EU elite, they have never tried to hide this. A binding commitment to "ever closer union" was there at the beginning and has been constantly repeated ever since. But the same cannot be said of the British establishment: ever since the membership and referendum debate of the early 1970s it has tried to conceal this fundamental commitment. And the leopard is not about to change its spots.
We are committed by Treaty to make progress towards an ever-closer union. Until the Treaties are repealed by British law, this remains a statement of fact.
What I am afraid of - as we increasingly win the argument about how the UK's membership is damaging rather than beneficial - is that the British establishment will appear to renegotiate, come back claiming to have got "not all we want but enough", fix the wording for a referendum into a leading question giving them endless "wriggle-room" and win by fraud - all over again. In contrast with nearly 50 years of lies and half-truths from successive governments, I believe you, the public, are entitled to hear the truth about what the EU is and where it hopes to go.
There must be no more EU stitch-ups. It is time for our political class to be honest with the people of Britain and for the people of Britain to have their say.
Germans want return of the Deutschmark?
To finish on a slightly different note, an opinion poll shows that two-thirds of Germans think they would be better off with the Deutschmark instead of the euro. The cracks are certainly starting to appear! More details can be found from the article online at http://euobserver.com/economic/117568, which also contains a number of other gems of information about German attitudes to the European Union – although sadly, they are not generally in favour of outright withdrawal.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
You may have seen some recent opinion poll figures showing UKIP on 12% of the vote; two recent polls have shown us ahead of the Liberal Democrats and two further polls from YouGov have shown us as tied. All of this is certainly encouraging, not least because it has changed the political narrative in the country. A number of times during the Lib Dem Conference, comments were made about UKIP – with one presenter pointing out the 'unfairness' of UKIP getting less publicity than the Lib Dems for our Conference! Hearing UKIP's name mentioned throughout the Lib Dem Conference shows that we are having a sustained impact on the political scene.
But please allow me to be controversial for a moment. Those opinion polls, however good they are for UKIP, are not what has really encouraged me this week. It is the poll by ICM which put us on 6% of the vote. ICM are the tried-and-tested traditional polling company. Their methodology is very 'conservative' (small c) and therefore highly unfavourable to UKIP. One example is that they use what is known as a 'spiral of silence' adjustment – 50% of those refusing to say or saying they 'don't know' which party they will vote for are counted as planning to vote for the party they supported last time. If people saying 'don't know' are counted as Con/Lab/LD then it will depress the UKIP share.
ICM have a pretty good record of predicting General Elections, but that's because General Elections have been fairly predictable in recent times. In 2004, they failed to pick up UKIP's rise in the polls for the European elections. In short, they are set up to fail to pick up on a UKIP rise in the polls. For that reason, a 6% share of the vote with an opinion poll company like ICM shows that there really must be a rise in the UKIP vote – if even ICM are picking up on it, we must be making progress!
Statement from Steve Crowther about 'we demand a referendum' party
Many loyal and dedicated UKIP members have signed the petitions set up by Nikki Sinclaire and colleagues, and distributed their materials under the slogan 'We Demand a Referendum'. They have done this in good faith. Now, however, Ms Sinclaire and her colleagues have made clear that We Demand A Referendum is to be regarded as a new political party, registered with the Electoral Commission, which aims to stand against UKIP in the 2014 European Elections.
Under the UKIP Constitution, anyone joining or remaining in membership of the new party will be unable to retain their UKIP membership. The new party is actively canvassing for new members among those who have signified their support for the campaign in the past.
This new party makes clear that it intends to reduce UKIP's vote in the future. Though it cannot hope to achieve the level of support that UKIP has built over 20 years – we are now acknowledged even by Nick Clegg to be above the Liberal Democrats in public support – it might, if it survives, pose a threat to our goal of coming first in the 2014 European Elections, and causing an earthquake in British politics. As we have seen with the English Democrats, UK First etc in the past, a small party taking a small number of UKIP votes can hand additional seats to the Conservatives.
We therefore urge all UKIP members and others who have supported We Demand A Referendum in the past to sever their links with it, and put all their efforts behind achieving a UKIP win in 2014.
28% in Council by-election for UKIP
On Thursday night, UKIP candidate Chris Browne took 28% of the vote at a Council by-election in the Chertsey meads ward in Runnymede. The Conservative majority was slashed to just 138, providing a very real possibility of UKIP taking the seat next time around. The full result was:
Conservative 450
UKIP 312
Labour 312
Lib Dems 34
OMRLP 10
This seat saw 30+ Labour activists campaigning in the seat, with a huge effort made by them in the ward which contains their constituency office. The UKIP vote still increased from 22% to 28%, thanks to a highly-organised local campaign.
Across the country there were a few other Council by-elections held on Thursday, and it is an encouraging sign that the Party was well over 10% in all of them. A UKIP candidate (Graham Wood) in the New Haw ward also in Runnymede (where the Party did not run a large campaign) took 18.5% of the vote. A candidate in Dartford (Steve Wilders) took 13.5%, whilst a candidate in King's Lynn took 11.5% and 15.0% (Michael Stone) in District and County Council elections.
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP in the Daily Express
After official figures showed that immigration to the UK from Poland is once again rising, UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP was quoted in the Daily Express as saying "Polish immigration to Britain ebbs and flows but at all times the movement is basically in one direction. There is nothing we can do about this because of our EU membership." The full article can be found at http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/348758/Thousands-of-Polish-workers-flock-back-to-Britain-to-find-jobs.
UKIP in the Gibraltar Chronicle
As a one-quarter Gibraltarian (my grandmother was born on the Rock), I was delighted to see a UKIP article in the Gibraltar Chronicle. We now have UKIP members attempting to get the Party going over there, and the article linked below from William Dartmouth MEP can only help. William Dartmouth MEP was quoted on Spanish incursions into Gibraltarian territorial waters: "Now is the time for our Foreign Secretary William Hague to talk directly and firmly to the Spanish Government and warn them that no further incursions that threaten British sovereignty will not be tolerated." For the full article please visit http://www.chronicle.gi/headlines_details.php?id=26129.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
(http://www.hartlepoolpost.co.uk/images/ukip%20newsletter%20steve%20crowther.jpg)
http://www.hartlepoolpost.co.uk/files/Farage at Assembly Rooms.pdf (http://www.hartlepoolpost.co.uk/files/Farage%20at%20Assembly%20Rooms.pdf)
I have just been informed of the good news that UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP will be on next week's BBC Question Time programme from Slough against opponents including Vince Cable. Last time Paul was on Question Time, Paul Nuttall was for a time the top trend on Twitter in the UK and the fourth trend worldwide.
I apologise in advance if the frequency of forum newsletters goes down slightly over the next few weeks. As a candidate for Police Commissioner in South Yorkshire, I am finding my schedule becoming busier and busier very quickly. New candidates have still been coming forward even today (with nominations closing on Friday) and we hope to have most of the country covered with candidates. Like me, most members probably dislike the idea of politicising the police but if we must have political candidates, I'd rather members have the opportunity to choose a UKIP candidate!
As a candidate myself the experience has been an interesting one so far , and for the first time local radio has treated us exactly the same as other parties. Rather than being asked questions about the European Union, immigration and whether we're a single-issue Party ad nauseum, we're being asked the same questions as every other Party. That means we need to be on our guard and properly prepared for every discussion and interview.
On Monday, I had a 5-minute interview on Radio Sheffield in which as a UKIP representative there was no opportunity whatsoever to mention the European Union (and rightly so at this election) I was asked about the Hillsborough disaster and public confidence in the police the interview can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Ig7l4bYEZ6U
if you are interested.
Report on UK Independence Party NEC Meeting 1st October
Present: Nigel Farage MEP (Party Leader) (NF), Steve Crowther (Party Chairman) (SC), Paul Nuttall MEP (Deputy Leader) (PN), Toby Micklethwait (TM), George Curtis (GC), Steven Woolfe (SWo), Gerard Batten MEP (GB), Louise Bours (LB), Neil Hamilton (NH), Michael McGough (MM), David Coburn (DC), Hugh Williams (HW), Douglas Denny (DD) (from 1.20pm). Also present: Jonathan Arnott, General Secretary minutes (JA), Michael Greaves (Party Secretary) (MG), Pete Reeve (Nominating Officer) (PR), Stuart Wheeler (SW) (from 2.00pm).
Apologies for absence were received from Lisa Duffy and Andrew Moncreiff. The meeting started at 1.15pm.
The minutes of the previous meeting were approved.
NF's Leader's Report commented on the huge increase in the UKIP share of the vote being shown by opinion polls. On November 15th we have a huge event there are about 90 elections of different kinds taking place. We must focus on the Police Commissioner elections and the Parliamentary by-elections. The one advantage that we have had in Corby is the really long campaign, and Margot Parker is doing great work her commitment is awe-inspiring. We have bitten into both the Conservative and old Labour vote. We have the right themes, the right office and the right candidate. Now we need more activists to come.
SC is pleased that we sold 859 tickets for Conference, a record number. The atmosphere was fantastic and the introduction of the new councillors and Lord Stevens was very much uplifting. NF felt that the 9-minute package on the Today programme was objective and very good.
The NEC discussed possible Conference venues both for the Spring Conference and for next year's Party Conference. SC will be investigating a very high-profile venue for next year's Conference. The Spring Conference is likely to be held in the South.
The NEC discussed the Motions considered at Conference; the one motion which passed called upon Nigel Farage and the NEC to lead a tour de force in Scotland in advance of the independence referendum. Progress made by the Party recently in Scotland was noted, and the NEC agreed to come back to this matter at a future meeting. DC in particular wishes to help in Scotland. Some concern was noted about ensuring that any assistance does not appear to be an ˜English takeover of the debate, which could backfire.
The upper age limit for Young Independence was reduced from 35 to 30.
The Party's finances continue to improve. There will be a high-level meeting on policy within the next fortnight.
Rob Burberry updated on progress in the Police Commissioner elections. Funding is an issue with some candidates but we expect to stand in more than half the seats. Three regions have been particularly helpful with funding.
NF was determined to have as many candidates on the ballot paper as possible.
There was a discussion about the proposed Manifesto text, about how much general detail of UKIP policy should be included and how much must relate specifically to what a Police Commissioner can achieve.
LD had submitted a written report on the Corby campaign. Every household in E Northants has had a personal letter from Nigel Farage and we have just received another £1500 donation today. We are targeting the business, hand-delivering the letter to Corby which is time-consuming. We have 4 public meetings planned. The ‘what we stand for booklet is being well received. We are working on postal voter letters, election addresses and the pub campaign.
The NEC gave permission for the opening of new branches in East Hampshire, Bosworth and Swansea. The meeting closed at 5.40pm.
UKIP Remembrance Day wreaths
If you would like to order a UKIP Poppy Wreath for Remembrance Sunday, please contact Sue Ransome on 01205 311 373. The price is £25 including post and packaging.
Remembrance Sunday is marked by ceremonies at local war memorials in most cities, towns and villages, attended by civic dignitaries, ex-servicemen and women (principally members of the Royal British Legion), members of local armed forces regular and reserve units (Royal Navy and Royal Naval Reserve, Royal Marines and Royal Marines Reserve, Army and Territorial Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Auxiliary Air Force), military cadet forces (Sea Cadet Corps, Army Cadet Force and Air Training Corps as well as the Combined Cadet Force) and youth organisations (e.g. Scouts and Guides).
Wreaths of remembrance poppies are laid on the memorials and two minutes silence is held at 11 a.m. Church bells are usually rung "half-muffled", creating a sombre effect. Some people may wish to lay a UKIP wreath in remembrance on behalf of your branch officials, elected councillors etc. You will need to speak with your local council to arrange the laying and allotted time etc.
Fascinating piece by John Rentoul in the Independent
An article by John Rentoul in the Independent (I'm not sure whether it's in the paper or just the online edition) is very interesting. The article comments about the lack of UKIP media coverage, and begins by saying The UK Independence Party has the support of 8 per cent of voters on average, while 9 per cent say that they intend to vote for the Liberal Democrats. Yet UKIP is given much less than eight-ninths of the attention given to the junior government party. The full article is well worth a read at http://blogs.independent.co.uk/2012/10/16/a-shocking-case-of-media-bias/#comment-685079295.
Calling all students
If you're at Warwick University please get in touch with Nathan Peck who is trying to get a society going and would like to know if he has any 'friends' there. His email is N.Peck@warwick.ac.uk so people can contact him directly.
Similarly Miroslav Jahoda at Canterbury Christ Church University is also keen to find allies to help set up a society and he would appreciate any help that can be given, his email is jahoda.miro@gmail.com
Sheffield University already has a thriving UKIP society, which is always looking for more members and has more members than the Lib Dem society! Anyone interested in getting involved should contact Sam Launder at samuel.launder@hotmail.co.uk.
If you're at Portsmouth University please get in touch with Thomas Brett,tom@kbsquared.co.uk and help him to get a Society going there.
Attending Birmingham City University or a indeed a YI member in the Birmingham area? Then do get in touch with Laura Howard who's keen to start the process of setting up a University Society. Her email is doodicle.lawha@hotmail.com
Studying at Greenwich University? If so, give Rob Comley an email at cr223@gre.ac.uk and let's hope to see a UKIP Uni branch set up in London. Incidentally, if you're living/studying in London there are a number of events coming up including thier next social which will be held on 5th Nov, venue TBA.
To the other end of the country now though, if you're a UKIP member at Aberdeen University you might be interested to know that a society is just starting up. So if you haven't come across it yet please 'Like' their Facebook page - www.facebook.com/AUUKIP - and email Sam Dyer at srdyer@btinternet.com.
Similarly at Hull University they are close (hopefully) to getting enough members to be a properly ratified society with the Union, so if you're studying there and yet to get in touch then please do so! Liam Porter, Vice-President of Young Independence Hull University (UKIP), can be contacted via his email liamp93@hotmail.co.uk
Finally one of our established Societies at York University is keen to for any UKIP members studying at York University or indeed York St. Johns to get in touch. The contact here is the Chairman of the Society, Curtis Sinclair, cjgs501@york.ac.uk
And now for something completely different!
Not Monty Python but James Bond actually. A London Evening Standard review of Skyfall, the new James Bond film, mentioned UKIP in summing up the film. In short: this is the UKIP take on Bond. A sign of the times, then.
Perhaps James Bond would be a UKIP voter; very British with a clear sense of duty. Either way, it's good to see the Party's name being mentioned in unusual places.Don't believe me? See http://www.standard.co.uk/comment/comment/skyfall-is-a-snapshot-of-the-way-we-are-now-8213550.html for proof.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
STOP PRESS: UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP will be on BBC Any Questions tonight (19th October) at 8pm on Radio 4. When I point these things out in newsletters, often members complain that I don't give more notice. In this case, I found out 5 minutes before sending out the newsletter. I try to give as much notice as possible.
Finally! The nominations have now closed for the Police and Crime Commissioner elections across the country.
Out of the 41 'seats' up for grabs, UKIP will have 24 candidates in place. I owe our co-ordinator for these elections, Rob Burberry, an apology. In a previous newsletter I blithely announced that UKIP would be standing in 'most' of the areas, but apparently that was a lot more touch-and-go than I realised. Anyway all's well that ends well. We're still not sure whether we have more candidates than the Liberal Democrats or not. I counted 22 a couple of hours ago, but the Guardian claims that it's 23. The BBC reckons they might have 24. The Lib Dems' website is less than illuminating, as they had a story showing they had 13 candidates towards the end of September. If UKIP have managed to get more candidates than the Lib Dems (or even equalled), then it will certainly make it difficult for the media to pigeonhole us as a 'minor party' at these elections. That would be a major news story, and yet another nail in the coffin of Nick Clegg's leadership of that Party.
UKIP's National Co-ordinator for the PCC elections, Rob Burberry said: "Party activists have worked very hard over recent weeks to make sure that we have high-calibre candidates standing in the majority of areas across the country."
Party Leader, Nigel Farage MEP, said that these elections demonstrate a significant step forward for UKIP: "We will not be contesting these elections on a 'withdraw from the EU' ticket, but on a better, more responsive policing ticket. We are talking to people about their problems, listening to their concerns and proving once and for all that we are a party that has transformed itself into a serious player, with a broad range of interests."
Later on in this newsletter you will find a list of all our 24 candidates.
Call for potential candidates for Middlesborough by-election
The Party is now seeking for applicants to stand at the forthcoming by election in Middlesborough. The closing date for applicants is 4pm on Wednesday 24th October. Any member can apply for selection but you will need to pass an Assessment Centre and get on the national Approved List of candidates. If you are interested in standing, please contact Lisa Duffy for further details on 07890110225 or apply to partydirector@ukip.org.
UKIP NEC Elections 2012 - extra time to return ballot papers
Copies of Independence News have taken longer than expected to arrive in some areas. Consequently, the deadline for return of ballots has been extended by 1 week and must now be received by 5pm on Wednesday 31st October. Please let all UKIP members know, especially those who do not receive this newsletter. The count will therefore begin on 1st October.
All Forthcoming UKIP media dates
Godfrey Bloom MEP will be on the Sunday Politics (Yorks & Lincs) on Sunday – BBC 1, 11.00am.
Paul Nuttall MEP will be on Question Time from Slough on Thursday – BBC 1, 10.35pm.
Nigel Farage MEP will be on Question Time from Corby on 15 November – BBC 1, 10.35pm.
All Louise Bours Police Commissioner interview
Louise Bours, candidate for PCC in Cheshire was interviewed on October 11th by Stuart George on BBC Radio Stoke. You can hear the whole interview at http://ukipeastcheshire.org.uk/interview-on-bbc-radio-stoke-louise-bours-ppc-candidate-cheshire/.
All the UKIP Police and Crime Commissioner candidates
Cambridgeshire - Paul Bullen
Cheshire - Louise Bours
Derbyshire - David Gale
Devon & Cornwall - Bob Smith
Durham - Michael Costello
Essex - Andrew Smith
Greater Manchester - Steven Woolfe
Hampshire - Stephen West
Hertfordshire - Marion Mason
Humberside - Godfrey Bloom
Kent - Piers Wauchope
Lancashire – Rob Drobny
Merseyside - Hilary Jones
Norfolk - Matthew Smith
Northamptonshire - Jim MacArthur
Northumbria - Alistair Baxter
North Wales - Warwick Nicholson
South Yorkshire - Jonathan Arnott
Suffolk - Bill Mountford
Surrey - Robert Shatwell
Sussex - Tony Armstrong
Thames Valley - Barry Cooper
West Midlands - Bill Etheridge
Wiltshire - John Short
For those wishing to know the breakdown of how each region has performed in terms of getting candidates to stand, it has been as follows:
South East -5 (5) – 100%
Eastern - 5 (6) – 83.3%
North West - 4 (5) – 80%
North East - 2 (3) – 66.7%
Yorkshire & North Lincolnshire - 2 (4) – 50%
East Midlands - 2 (5) – 40%
South West - 2 (5) – 40%
West Midlands - 1 (4) – 25%
Wales - 1 (4) – 25%
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
Labour's Gisela Stuart MP has come out in support of British withdrawal from the European Union, which can only be good for the country as a whole. We desperately need Labour, Conservatives and Liberal Democrats to recognise the threat that the European Union represents. Meanwhile, the London Evening Standard recognises today that the Conservatives are losing large numbers of votes to UKIP.
In the meantime, the election campaigns continue to go well. In Corby, activists have reported dirty tricks being used by our opponents, which is a sure sign that they are running scared. One positive feature of the Police and Crime Commissioner elections is that all candidates, of whatever party label, are being treated equally by the BBC. Therefore UKIP candidates are enjoying far more publicity than, say, at a General election. Here in South Yorkshire as a candidate I have already done three radio interviews, with at least three more debates to be broadcast on radio, and two further television appearances planned. This will give us a real opportunity to get our message across to voters.
UKIP NEC elections to be re-run: Statement from Steve Crowther
As you may know, there have been some difficulties with the conduct of the NEC election this year. With the unusually late date of the Conference, we had the task of carrying out the whole process, from issue of ballot papers to closing the poll and conducting the count, in quite a tight timescale. Feedback suggested a fortnight ago that delays in delivery of the magazine, with the ballot papers, were hampering the process, and we therefore extended the closing date by a week. Last week, I commissioned the Head Office Call Centre to survey all regions and establish whether the ballot had been conducted satisfactorily.
The results of that survey showed that a significant proportion of the membership were potentially hampered from taking part in this ballot. Many of the magazines arrived too late for the original closing date; and many members were unaware of the extension, and so had not voted. It is impossible for us to notify all members of an extension by any means other than a full mailing.
Consequently, after lengthy consultation, the Returning Officer has recommended, and the NEC has agreed, that we should void the current voting process and re-run the election. The NEC's decision is that the election should be re-run in the next edition of the magazine, to be published in January for a February ballot. This will allow us to ensure the enfranchisement of all members, with an ample voting period. It is becoming clear that neither the Post Office nor third-party delivery services can now be relied upon to carry out full delivery, within the timescales we have expected in the past.
It will also enable us to ensure that the fullest possible details of all candidates are both published in the magazine and displayed on the party website. Some candidates have been unhappy with the level of detail carried in this year's election material. We could run the election as a stand-alone activity, but this would cost us around £7000-8000, not including the cost of Freepost responses. By combining the ballot with the next magazine we can remove that cost, enabling us to offer Freepost returns to voters.
Paul Nuttall's Question Time appearance
Did you miss Paul Nuttall's appearance on Question Time on Thursday? Don't want to have to listen through the hot air of the LibLabCon representatives? If so, this YouTube clip of Paul's performance will enable you to catch up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QtroDfznjjk.
UKIP candidate Chris Cassidy in the Manchester Evening News
For those who have asked about the Manchester Central by-election which is taking place on the same day as the Corby by-election and the Police Commissioner elections, candidate Chris Cassidy was in the Manchester Evening News today. When asked "What is the single biggest issue facing Manchester and what would you do to fix it?", he responded as follows:
A major problem in Manchester is crime, from organised crime involving drugs, guns and gangs, right down to low level crime such as graffiti, vandalism and shoplifting. Crime is something that impacts every person in Manchester at some point and causes untold pain and anguish.
As an MP, I would be a community champion, not a politician. Someone who can bring local communities together so we can start to tackle the root causes of crime. Someone who can bring together the local organisations that work to end knife crime and drugs amongst our young people, through education and awareness. I can campaign for tougher sentences, more funding for local charities and more support for the victims of crime. Being young and growing up in Manchester gives me the ability to act as a role model to young people who are so often trapped by crime.
UKIP in the Daily Express
First, Gerard Batten MEP was quoted in the Daily Express today after experts predicted a surge in immigration from Bulgaria and Romania. This was chosen as the 'Quote of the Day' by the Express. Gerard Batten said that "Mass immigration has had a detrimental effect on British living standards. Opening the door to Bulgarians and Romanians will just make it worse."
Then, UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP was quoted after it emerged, bizarrely, that the European Union plans to 'ban hairdressers from wearing high heels'. Paul Nuttall said that "These plans will just raise costs to consumers and make life that little bit less fun for us all. The sensible things in the proposals are already covered by British regulations, the rest is classic Euro micro-management."
Two more defections to UKIP
Experienced County Councillor Alan Pote, who has represented Rothwell on Northamptonshire County Council for the last two terms has joined UKIP after serving recently as an Independent. Cllr. Pote is the second councillor in Northamptonshire to join UKIP after Cllr. Jonathan Bullock of Kettering Borough Council joined the Party in September.
Councillor Pote said, "I have been very impressed by the policies and personalities in UKIP. Their parliamentary candidate in Corby, Margot Parker, is running an impressive campaign on the issues that matter to people. Meanwhile their candidate for the Police and Crime Commissioner in Northamptonshire, Jim MacArthur, has the exact experience necessary for the role, being both a former member of the SAS and a former Police Special Constable. As a former serviceman myself I appreciate his qualities. I will also enjoy working again with Cllr Bullock. He and I were on the Cabinet of Kettering Borough Council together a few years ago and we worked well together".
Cllr Bullock said, "I am very pleased that such an experienced councillor as Alan Pote has joined UKIP. He is an excellent county councillor and was a hardworking borough councillor for 12 years, including having a very successful year as Mayor of Kettering Borough. He will contribute to the development of UKIP policy both locally and, I'm sure, nationally. He will be a valued addition to UKIP". Cllr Pote was also welcomed by Roger Helmer MEP who came over to UKIP earlier in the year. "This just shows how UKIP is growing locally - membership is up and our votes are up at Elections we contest." Mr. Helmer said.
Meanwhile, a former Conservative councillor and Deputy Mayor in Kings Lynn has defected from the Tories to UKIP after 46 years in the Conservative Party. Bill Daws is the latest in a string of defections from the Tories who cite a blatant disregard for selection rules and nepotism in their branches amongst their reasons for leaving.
All The EU is bad for your health
New reports point to the EU as a key the reason behind closures of maternity units and casualty departments. UKIP Health spokeswoman Steph McWilliam said: ""All three of the other main parties are determined to sacrifice the NHS to keep us in the EU. Do none of them understand that we cannot stay in the EU and keep the NHS as we know it? Do any of them understand the impact a rising population is having on demand? Or the EU Cross Border Health Directive? Do they realise the effect of not just the Working Time Directive but procurement rules, EU licensing of medical devices and drugs, free movement of people who may not have adequate English language skills as staff or patients?
"The bottom line is that from training to research, from comprehension to basic patient care, the EU harms the Health Service. How many times must the BMA, the GMC and other independent health bodies point this out before out political masters do something? The EU is not to blame. It is our Westminster politicians from the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrat parties who have allowed this. If the public think the NHS is a price worth paying, they will keep voting for the same. If they value the NHS and wish to keep it, they need to consider voting UKIP."
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
Tonight's EU budget vote may reek of political opportunism, but at least the government has been defeated and a clear House of Commons vote has called for a cut in the EU budget. The vote is non-binding, so of course David Cameron and the European Union could easily perform the usual euro-trick of ignoring the vote and proceeding regardless.
Over 50 Conservative MPs rebelled, leading some to suggest that perhaps they should join UKIP! On a day when the Conservatives seem to have done a U-turn on wind farms as well, perhaps at last a modicum of progress is being made.
UKIP North West rally in Liverpool
Just days remain until the UKIP North West autumn rally in Liverpool, which boasts an impressive line-up of speakers. With those to speak including Nigel Farage MEP, Paul Nuttall MEP, Roger Helmer MEP, Jon Gaunt, Lord Monckton and Dr. John Whittaker you won't find a more impressive array of UKIP speakers outside the annual Party Conference! The day features a Leadership Q&A session and I'm also looking forward to taking a day off my Police and Crime Commissioner campaign to speak on education. Tickets are priced at just £10 and the venue will be the Britannia Adelphi hotel in Liverpool.
If you're interested in attending, I believe there are still some tickets available from the North West regional office on 01524 387690. The full day's programme can be found at http://ukip.org/page/north-west-autumn-rally-in-liverpool-full-programme.
UKIP Police Commissioner candidates in the media
The list below is certainly incomplete – could candidates please let Rob Burberry know of any forthcoming media commitments not listed here?
I (Jonathan Arnott, South Yorkshire) will be on the Sunday Politics (Yorkshire) – programme starts 11am on Sunday morning. I will then be taking part in a debate on BBC Radio Sheffield on Sunday at 7pm. On Tuesday, I have a 'minute manifesto' being aired three times on Radio Sheffield – on breakfast time, the mid-morning show and the drive time show. I will then be on BBC Look North on Tuesday evening after 6.30pm, with other radio debates planned later that week.
I believe that Godfrey Bloom MEP (Humberside) will be on BBC Look North on the following Tuesday (Nov 13th) but have not yet had any confirmation.
Tony Armstrong (Sussex) was on BBC Radio Sussex on Monday at 8:50am
David Gale (Derbyshire) was on BBC Radio Sheffield this morning [for anyone who is astute enough to spot that Sheffield isn't in Derbyshire, BBC Radio Sheffield covers a wider area than just Sheffield - all of South Yorkshire and some of Derbyshire]
Hilary Jones (Merseyside) will be on BBC Radio Merseyside, tomorrow morning (Thursday 1st November) during the breakfast show.
Bill Etheridge (West Midlands) will be on Radio WM tomorrow morning at 7:30am
Louise Bours (Cheshire) will be on BBC Radio Manchester taking part in a live on-air debate tomorrow from 3-4pm
Marion Mason (Hertfordshire) is due to appear in the Watford Observer in this week's issue
Anti-EU sentiment rising in Czech Republic
Peter Mach, leader of the Czech Free Citizens Party, has pledged to leave the European Union if his party is elected at this year's elections. He is an advisor to the well-known figure of Vaclav Klaus, who was recently quoted as saying that Nigel Farage is the only UK Party leader who speaks sense.
He has recorded a New Year's message which will be circulated in the event that his Party is in power. Fortunately, there are English subtitles: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JR1BZ9zNhrg.
Nigel Farage speech in Newcastle
Over 300 people turned up to hear UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP speak in Newcastle. The Northern Echo reported the meeting in positive terms: http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/10013999.UKIP_leader_speaks_in_Newcastle/.
Young Independence Christmas Party
Young Independence will be having a Christmas drinks party on Tuesday 11th December 19.00 - 23.00 on HMS Belfast. UKIP Deputy leader Paul Nuttall MEP will be the keynote speaker. Tickets are priced at £25, which includes 2 complimentary drinks. A cash bar will also be open. YI also intent to hold a raffle and an auction, so if anyone can be kind enough to donate something please email Sean Howlett at seanhowlett@hotmail.com. Tickets can be purchased online at http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/event/4585098152.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP will be on Have I Got News For You tonight (9th November) at 9pm.
My apologies that the frequency of newsletters has dropped off somewhat during the campaign for the Police and Crime Commissioner elections. Since the last newsletter, we have had three by-elections called for 29th November – in Croydon North, Middlesbrough and Rotherham. All three of these seats could potentially see good UKIP results, with Rotherham particularly of note. Croydon North was of course anticipated and our candidate will be Winston McKenzie. In Middlesbrough, Richard Elvin is to be the candidate.
The NEC has the final say about all Parliamentary by-election candidates, but in Rotherham there will be a hustings for members within the constituency to have their say first. The candidate has not yet been selected, but a strong field of potential candidates have put their names forward.
Every UKIP candidate for Police and Crime Commissioner elections up and down the country has received a huge amount of publicity. By polling day I'll have been on 3 television programmes and 11 local radio programmes. The same level of publicity is true of every one of UKIP's 24 Police and Crime Commissioner candidates across the country, although naturally attention on polling day will be on Godfrey Bloom's campaign in Humberside, widely predicted to be our best chance of actually winning.
There is so much going on for the Party at the moment – I haven't yet even mentioned the key by-election in Corby which will also be held on Thursday. I urge all members to get over to Corby or Humberside to help the local campaigns.
Rob Burberry on the Today programme
Rob Burberry, the Party's Campaign Director for the Police and Crime Commissioner elections, represented the Party on the Today programme this morning. The interview can be heard again on the BBC iplayer from 48 minutes 18 seconds into this programme: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01nq2sd/Today_09_11_2012/. Rob has done a fantastic job under difficult circumstances to prepare UKIP for these elections.
Nigel Farage to be on Question Time
On Thursday 15th November, UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP will be on the BBC's flagship Question Time programme. Following Paul Nuttall MEP's successful performance, it is great to see another UKIP representative on the programme quickly.
Message from Party Chairman Steve Crowther
I hope you will all have seen that Nigel Farage's questioning of Chancellor Merkel in advance of her visit to David Cameron was the news item on both BBC and Channel 4. Effectively, the impression was given that the discussion about the UK's future in the EU was being conducted between the Prime Minister, Angela Merkel and Nigel Farage MEP.
Keep an eye on your media, especially in the Midlands, for our Corby candidate Margot Parker. She is inundated with interviews, including BBC TV deputy political editor James Langdale. A couple of days ago Bloomberg TV arrived in town to talk to the Labour candidate, spotted our shop across the road and interviewed Margot instead.
BUT WE MUST HAVE MORE PEOPLE ON THE GROUND FROM NOW TO NEXT THURSDAY. PLEASE GET AS MANY PEOPLE AS POSSIBLE TO GIVE US HALF A DAY/A DAY OF THEIR TIME. THIS IS MASSIVELY IMPORTANT. IF WE DO WELL NEXT THURSDAY IN CORBY, WE WILL DO WELL IN MIDDLESBROUGH, ROTHERHAM AND CROYDON NORTH ON 29 NOV.
UKIP North West rally a huge success
The North West UKIP rally in Liverpool on Saturday was a resounding success. More than 300 people attended the day long event in the city's Adelphi Hotel, which had an impressive card of speakers including Party Leader Nigel Farage, his Deputy Paul Nuttall, local MEP and media personality Jon Gaunt. Nigel Farage pointed out that at the last such North West rally five years ago there were just 32 people present but the Party has since gone from strength to strength and locally is polling 14% - double the LibDem figure.
"We are on the verge of something very big and very historic in British politics," he said. He pointed out that while UKIP is no longer a single issue Party the Parliamentary debate last week on the proposed EU budget would not have happened but for UKIP driving the European Union up the agenda.
Paul Nuttall told the audience that UKIP is confident of coming first in the 2014 Euro-elections and the North West should be sending three MEPs to Brussels: "Opinion polls show 60% want out of the EU and 80% want a referendum on our membership."
Young Independence Christmas Party - reminder
Young Independence will be having a Christmas drinks party on Tuesday 11th December 19.00 - 23.00 on HMS Belfast. UKIP Deputy leader Paul Nuttall MEP will be the keynote speaker. Tickets are priced at £25, which includes 2 complimentary drinks. A cash bar will also be open. YI also intent to hold a raffle and an auction, so if anyone can be kind enough to donate something please email Sean Howlett at seanhowlett@hotmail.com. Tickets can be purchased online at http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/event/4585098152.
Does the government want to destroy our pubs?
If the Government does not want to destroy our pubs then it has a very funny way of showing it, said UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall today. By rejecting any thought of holding a review into the Beer tax escalator they are condemning many more pubs into financial ruin and closure. "In the last six months alone in my region 44 pubs have closed and that is after years of damage to the industry caused by a range of reasons including the continual ramping up of taxes, unfair competition from supermarkets, pubco intransigence and of course the smoking ban", said Mr Nuttall, UKIP pub campaign spokesman.
"Without our pubs, what are we? They are an essential part of our culture, and in towns and villages across the country they provide a public service, uniting their local communities. I wholeheartedly support the work of CAMRA, the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) and the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) and the over 100,000 people (including myself) who signed a petition calling for a review. I also fully back the CAMRA rally at Parliament on the 12th of December. If we do not fight for our pubs, we will lose them, and we will all be the poorer for it."
And finally...
You can't have failed to notice that the EU has failed to have its accounts signed off for the 18th year in a row. This means, of course, that there are people who are eligible to vote on Thursday who weren't even born the last time they were signed off!
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
The Thin Purple Line holds firm
UKIP have reinforced our position as the country's third political force with an impressive performance in the Police & Crime Commissioner elections. There were great performances all over the country, but the top-line data is:
- All deposits retained (hooray!)
- Lib-Dems beaten in 10 out of 18 contests and in first-preference votes
- A top share of 18.74% by Jim MacArthur in Northants
- 3rd places in Cambridgeshire, Derbyshire, Durham, Lancashire and Northumbria
- A top score of 29,327 votes by Tony Armstrong in Sussex
Congratulations are in order to all our candidates, namely Paul Bullen, Louise Bours, David Gale, Bob Smith, Michael Costello, Andrew Smith, Steven Woolfe, Stephen West, Marion Mason, Godfrey Bloom, Piers Wauchope, Rob Drobny, Hillary Jones, Matt Smith, Jim MacArthur, Alistair Baxter, Warwick Nicholson, Jonathan Arnott, Bill Mountford, Robert Shatwell, Tony Armstrong, Barry Cooper, Bill Etheridge and John Short.
Also my grateful thanks to Ron Burberry, Peter Reeve, Lisa Duffy, Damian Wilson and Chris Adams for all their hard work, and to all of you who have raised money and delivered leaflets to achieve these results.
Now on to Rotherham, where we could really cause a shock. The Campaign Office location is: 24 Wellgate, Rotherham, S60 2LR and is a short distance from the Rotherham Central train station. See you there on Saturday!
Well, what a week it's already turning out to be for UKIP! Enquiries about joining the Party are coming at an incredible rate and the Party membership will surely soar. The news that 8 Conservative MPs have had talks with UKIP about defecting is certainly very encouraging. The Rotherham fostering scandal has ensured that we have our best-ever chance of success at a Parliamentary by-election.
Election campaigns have come thick and fast over the last couple of months, and I'd like to start by paying tribute to the hard-working branches and activists who are making everything happen. I spent a couple of hours with the Middlesbrough campaign this afternoon after my daily campaigning in Rotherham, and I've been struck in both campaigns by just how much work branches are actually doing on the ground. Although I've not been able to get down to Croydon North, I've heard encouraging reports of the effort that has gone in there as well.
Today (I'm writing this late on the 26th), with dozens of flood warnings across the North and a number of A-roads closed, the UKIP spirit showed through as no-one stopped campaigning until soaked to the skin and/or leaflets had turned to soggy pulp by the driving rain. Let's also remember that these by-elections come just a fortnight after Corby and the Police Commissioner elections across the country. Our activists have had no break, and launched themselves straight into intense by-election campaigns. Later in this newsletter, Nigel Farage will urge everyone to get to Rotherham to help for 'one last push' before the election on Thursday. If there's any chance at all of a victory on Thursday, it could change the UK political landscape forever.
One remaining reason that millions don't vote UKIP is that they don't see us as potential winners, or being able to take seats. Way back in 1999, before my involvement with the Party, I didn't vote UKIP at the European elections for that exact reason: even under PR, I didn't expect UKIP to take seats. In my defence, I was a naïve teenager at the time! But once I saw UKIP take 3 seats in that election, my mind was immediately made up as to how I would vote at the next European elections in 2004. Just one by-election success is all it takes for a further UKIP surge in the polls, and that would lead to a rapid re-alignment of British politics.
I'm certainly very optimistic about the future of the Party at present. But I'm also appalled that as many as 8% of the voters in this Sheffield Star online poll agree with Rotherham Council about fostering: http://www.thestar.co.uk/news/local/vote-should-ukip-couple-be-able-to-foster-children-1-5169082.
Meanwhile, UKIP councillor Julien Parrott has tabled the following question to the Mayor in his local area, asking: "If he will join me in condemning the decision by Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council to remove three foster children from their home because their foster parents are members of the UK Independence Party, and thereby reassure foster carers and prospective foster carers and prospective adopters in Torbay (where there are currently some 256 children in care) that they will not be discriminated against on the grounds of which political party they may belong to or for whom they may vote?" A good question, and nice to know that UKIP councillors are standing up for the people that they represent.
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP – personal message to UKIP members about Rotherham by-election
Andrew Gilligan, The Telegraph: "In a low-turnout by-election with big protest vote potential, the fostering decision by a Labour council could just be the kind of issue UKIP might use to pull off an upset. It's still much more likely that Labour will win, of course. But if I was them (UKIP), I'd pile everything I have, and more, into Rotherham."
Dear UKIP Supporter,
UKIP is facing one the biggest opportunities in our history. You will all have seen the massive coverage of the Rotherham 'fostering' story over the past two days. We've been phoning voters in Rotherham all weekend. This is not a scientific survey, but look what people told us:
Voting Labour.............................36%
Voting Conservative...................0% (1 person)
Voting UKIP.................................25%
Would consider voting UKIP.....26%
We have 4 days to persuade the people of Rotherham to do something extraordinary, by voting for liberty, voting for freedom of speech - voting for UKIP. Will you help us change the face of politics in Britain? Will you help us to tell these bureaucrats that we're not going to put up with their nonsense any longer? We need YOU in Rotherham this week. Come to our town-centre Campaign HQ at 24 Wellgate, S60 2LR or ring 07890 110 225.
Sincerely,
Nigel Farage MEP (UKIP Leader)
UKIP response to the Conservative 'deal' proposed by Michael Fabricant
You will, of course, have seen the news that Michael Fabricant suggested a 'deal' between the Conservatives and UKIP. The Party has been quick to distance itself from any such suggestion, and Gawain Towler in the UKIP Press Office has briefly outlined the Party's thinking:
1) No deal is on the table
2) The deal offered by Fabricant seems to be for Nigel Farage to get a Cabinet post, and UKIP can go hang. Nigel Farage will not be bought.
3) UKIP is a broad church and up to 30% of our members come from Labour background.
4) UKIP have no problems with ordinary members and activists - Tories, or members of other parties ¬ who share our desire for the repatriation of democracy from Brussels to the UK.
5) David Cameron has shown himself to be entirely untrustworthy, particularly over his behaviour on Saturday when he provided a retraction followed by a retraction of a retraction, and finally another retraction of his claims that UKIP are 'racists mostly'. At the present he claims some of us are racists. He has been slippery on the EU issue on many occasions in the past (that cast iron guarantee). We cannot trust him, and we would be letting down our members and supporters if we did so. This we will not do.
6) UKIP will be fighting all Westminster seats at the next General Election.
7) Those who, in the past, we have stood down against must make a decision. Do they support their leader's position, on Europe, on UKIP and on a whole range of other issues? Or do they support this country? If so they have to consider their position.
Incredible UKIP publicity
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP and Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP have been swamped with media interviews all day, and Alexandra Swann was on Sky News.
At the time of writing, all of the main political stories on the Daily Telegraph are related to UKIP: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/.For me the most interesting story was the news in the Telegraph that there are 8 Conservative MPs considering defecting to UKIP. Our Party Treasurer Stuart Wheeler has been heavily involved – for more information please see http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9703678/Exclusive-Eight-Tory-MPs-in-talks-about-defecting-to-Ukip.html.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
The moment of truth has finally arrived, with the results of the three Parliamentary by-elections in Rotherham, Middlesbrough and Croydon North all now in. They represent UKIP's best-ever night of Parliamentary by-elections with two second places out of the three from Jane Collins and Richard Elvin (and at the moment, it's great to see that EVERY election seems to be a record-breaker!). What else would we expect, when UKIP has hit record levels in the national opinion polls this week? All of the results are given in full below. What, I wonder, will be the political fallout of tonight coming so soon after Corby and the PCC elections? Could Nick Clegg's leadership of the Liberal Democrats now be in trouble after they've been comprehensively beaten by UKIP yet again, lost two deposits and finished in 8th place in Rotherham?
All three of the Parliamentary by-elections looked to be interesting seats, and in all three Labour was the party defending. The first question – could UKIP take votes in Labour areas? – has been answered repeatedly over recent years: Yes. After tonight, our top 4 by-election performances (Rotherham, Corby, Barnsley, Middlesbrough) have all been in seats won by Labour. The media may portray us from time to time as a Party of ex-Conservatives, but the reality is far more complex and in a lot of areas we do take Labour votes. Both Rotherham and Middlesbrough have a track record of strong UKIP results at local elections. Even without the fostering scandal, UKIP would probably have done well in these by-elections. But in Rotherham in particular the full effect was shown as the Party smashed our previous by-election record set in Corby just a fortnight ago, and Jane took an impressive 21.8% of the vote.
Behind the scenes, the Party's by-election team has become far more professional in recent years and we have been able to compete with the other parties' machines for the first time. But these by-elections presented a different, unique challenge, and UKIP's Party Director Lisa Duffy was the one to bear the brunt of it. The Corby by-election took place just a fortnight ago, together with Police Commissioner elections across the country. With the by-elections called at the minimum notice required by law, we suddenly found ourselves having to hit deadlines at incredibly short notice, our national by-election campaign team had to fight more than one area at once, and concertina campaigns on the ground into just a couple of weeks.
How far the Party has progressed in such a short space of time! A couple of years ago, we wouldn't have had the expertise or resources to fight three campaigns properly at such short notice. We would never have been able to put 50 activists in the field in Rotherham, and 30 in Middlesbrough, simultaneously on the same day on Saturday. Praise is also due of course to the by-election candidates Jane Collins, Richard Elvin and Winston McKenzie who have campaigned tirelessly in this election. And whilst on the subject of progress, 750 new members joined the Party last weekend alone. Whilst other parties' memberships fall, UKIP's continues to rise.
The media story of 29th November will be of UKIP progressing due to the fostering scandal. But that's only one half of the story: don't let's forget the hard work of our campaign team and activists. The British infantry in World War One were often described as 'lions led by donkeys'. The way that Lisa Duffy and her team have built a slick by-election machine means that I think it would be perfectly fair to describe UKIP activists as 'lions led by lions'. Onwards and upwards!
Rotherham by-election result
Labour – 9866 (46.3%)
UKIP – Jane Collins – 4648 (21.8%)
BNP – 1804 (8.5%)
Respect – 1778 (8.3%)
Conservative – 1157 (5.4%)
English Democrats – 703 (3.3%)
Independent – 582 (2.7%)
Liberal Democrats – 451 (2.1%)
TUSC – 261 (1.2%)
Independent – 51
No description – 27 [English Defence League]
Middlesbrough by-election result
Labour -10201 (60.5%)
UKIP – Richard Elvin – 1990 (11.8%)
Liberal Democrats – 1672 (9.9%)
Conservative – 1063 (6.3%)
Peace Party – 1060 (6.3%)
BNP – 328 (1.9%)
TUSC - 277 (1.6%)
No description -275 (1.6%)
Croydon North by-election result
Labour – 15892 (64.7%)
Conservative – 4137 (16.8%)
UKIP – Winston McKenzie – 1400 (5.7%)
Liberal Democrats – 860 (3.5%)
Green – 855 (3.5%)
Respect -707 (2.9%)
Christian Peoples - 192 (0.8%)
National Front - 161 (0.7%)
Communist - 119 (0.5%)
Official Monster Raving Loony Party – 110 (0.4%)
Nine eleven was an inside job – 66 (0.3%)
Young People's Party – 63 (0.3%)
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
The Party's membership continues its meteoric rise. We have gone past 19,000 over recent weeks and I hope to soon be able to report an increase to take us over the key 20,000 figure. Party membership has been falling in the traditional old parties for years; UKIP is the only Party showing a real increase in membership.
Later in this newsletter is a report on this month's NEC meeting. As regular readers will know, I often like to focus on issues of interest which aren't always widely-reported in the Party. At yesterday's NEC meeting, the Party's decision to register as a Party able to contest elections in Gibraltar was quite an understated one and was agreed without a murmur. I have to declare an interest here, as a one-quarter Gibraltarian (my late grandmother was born in Gibraltar), but the Party is certainly showing an expansion beyond just 'England'. Once, UKIP was attacked regularly as a party of 'Little Englanders'. That could hardly have been further from the truth then, but now such an attack would look positively insane.
UKIP has shown, through the election of Cllr. Henry Reilly and the defection of David McNarry MLA, that we have potential in Northern Ireland as well as our elected representation in Wales and Scotland. We are truly a national Party. But why Gibraltar? There are plenty of ideological reasons for us to stand (not least the current threats to their sovereignty), but I'll give a simple practical one today. Gibraltar votes with the South West region in the European elections. If we can become active in Gibraltar, we will gain much-needed votes in 2014 which might help us get a third MEP elected in the South West.
More great opinion polls for UKIP
It's now becoming something of a habit that I'm reporting on great polling news for UKIP. This week, we have had an incredible 13% share of the vote with Opinium (that poll had the Lib Dems on just 9%), and today Angus Reid showed us on 11% (again, Lib Dems on 9%).
Full details of the Opinium survey can be found on the UKIP website at http://www.ukip.org/content/latest-news/2897-poll-points-to-record-support-for-ukip.
Report on UKIP NEC Meeting 3rd December 2012
Present: Steve Crowther, Executive Chairman (SC), Nigel Farage MEP, Party Leader (NF), George Curtis (GC), Mick McGough (MM), Louise Bours (LB), Gerard Batten MEP (GB), Andrew Moncreiff (AM), Neil Hamilton (NH), David Coburn (DC), Hugh Williams (HW), Toby Micklethwait (TM), Douglas Denny (DD), Alan Bown (AB), Paul Nuttall MEP (PN), Mick McGough (MM), Steven Woolfe (SWo).
Also present: Jonathan Arnott, General Secretary – minutes (JA), Lisa Duffy, Party Director (LD), Pete Reeve, Nominating Officer (PR), Stuart Wheeler (SW). Apologies for absence were received from Michael Greaves.
The meeting started at 1.01pm. The minutes of the previous meeting were approved.
NF reported to the NEC as Party Leader: In Rotherham Labour scored 70% of the postal vote. On the day we were neck and neck, but the fostering scandal broke after the postal votes had gone out. We must get as many people as possible to by-election campaigns in the future.
The NEC considered various options for making it easier for members to help including telephone canvassing which can be done from a distance. The English County Council elections next year are absolutely critical for many reasons, not least the question as to whether we will make the transition to a 'real, credible alternative' in the eyes of large donors. Full slates of candidates are critical.
Eastleigh is a potential Parliamentary by-election, and the Party will be doing some preparatory work in case a by-election is called there. We have candidates selected for 75 of the 85 County Council seats in Hampshire already. The NEC recorded a formal vote of thanks to Lisa Duffy for her hard work on the by-election campaigns, and also thanked Darryl Pitcher, John Wilkinson and all of the candidates.
The meeting discussed recent issues within Young Independence.
Will Gilpin was invited to present to the NEC. The NEC approved his appointment as the new Chief Executive of the Party. Steve Crowther as Party Chairman will continue to oversee the voluntary Party, but Will Gilpin's role will include overseeing the work of our press, internet and social media team. He will report to Steve Crowther.
The Treasurer reported that the Party's finances are in the best state ever, and the Party membership is now over 19,000.
The NEC approved JA's proposed changes (P.4.1) to the Rules of Procedure to specify the information to be provided in Independence News for NEC candidates, with minor amendments. New Rules N.7, N.8 and N.9 clarify the role of a Returning Officer in Party elections.
The NEC discussed the proposed immigration policy, and decided to send it back to the policy sub-committee to be finalised.
PR suggested that we should change the official name of the Party now that the Electoral Commission recognises 'UKIP' as being a word not merely an acronym. This also opens up new options for Party descriptors. PR will register us as a party eligible to contest elections in Gibraltar.
The NEC approved the formation of new branches in Trafford and Hemel Hempstead. The meeting briefly discussed the proposed MEP selection process. SC outlined a potential selection procedure which had been discussed by the relevant sub-committee. A paper will be produced for NEC discussion.
The meeting closed at 5.16pm.
BBC profile of UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP
Following UKIP's recent progress at the ballot box, the BBC has done an extended profile of UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP which you might find to be of interest: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-20543513.
Ofsted study shows the need for choice in education
"The Ofsted study that highlights the postcode lottery in educational standards across England and Wales is a natural and unavoidable result of the comprehensive education policies of the last 30 years," said Derek Clark MEP, the UKIP education spokesman.
"The study makes it very clear that these failed policies have created an ever greater educational divide. But it is not just those who live in the poorest areas who have been failed. The study highlights that in many more affluent parts of country children also suffer failure. As Sir Michael Wilshaw, the chief inspector of schools said, some schools were 'coasting simply because they've got a significant number of children not on free school meals'. This is a direct result of the collapse of educational competition."
"Closing down competition and grammar schools due to the ideology of the comprehensive system, has allowed even good schools to become flabby and unambitious for children. This system is a failure under its own terms as it has led to a widening of the educational and social gap. It fails our children and the country's future, as failures in education lead inexorably to greater failures in society. It is time to reintroduce competition, so that talented children, from whatever background, social or economic have the chance to excel."
Taxpayers' Alliance – what tomorrow's budget statement should say
You may or may not agree with everything in this document, but it's certainly interesting and ambitious. Of course, I rather suspect that the actual budget will be a far more dull affair than this suggestion: https://www.taxpayersalliance.com/economics/2012/12/tomorrows-autumn-statement.html.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
You may already have heard on the news of the death of Sir Patrick Moore, a real UKIP stalwart. The Party issued the following statement yesterday:
The Party mourns the death of Sir Patrick Moore, one of the country's best loved broadcasters, a world-renowned astronomer, virtuoso xylophonist and long-time UKIP supporter. Sir Patrick was an implacable opponent of European integration. Having founded his own United Country Party in the 1970s he became a supporter of UKIP during the 1990s, frequently speaking at public meetings to great acclaim.
In 2001 he supported Douglas Denny in the Chichester constituency, and he remained close to the party in his local area until his death. Nigel Farage said today: "Since I first met Sir Patrick when he dominated a UKIP stage in 1999, he has been a friend and an inspiration. Not only to us in UKIP, but across the country and around the world. Today we have seen the passing of a true great, and a true Englishman".
UKIP support hits new record high at an incredible 16% of the vote
A poll for TNS-BMRB shows UKIP support at DOUBLE that of the Liberal Democrats across the entire country: CON 26% (-2), LAB 41% (+1), LD 8% (-2), UKIP 16% (+4), OTHER 9% (-1). This is of course UKIP’s best ever poll result by a long way (how many times have I said that in recent months?) and shows the Party making major progress since last month’s poll.
Whilst sub-samples of polls must always be treated with the utmost caution, a look at the detailed tables shows that UKIP is on 24% amongst over-65s â€" the age group most likely to vote.
Letter published in the Yorkshire Post
I rarely reproduce articles from local and regional newspapers in full, but the following letter from GP Taylor, from Scarborough in the Yorkshire Post has to be an exception and you will no doubt see why when you read it. The writer of the letter is an ordained Anglican priest, writer and broadcaster.
I HAVE been harbouring a deep and dark secret for the past year. At first, I didn’t even dare tell my wife, but I knew that at some point my Machiavellian assignations would be found out. Last week, I was threatened with my secret being “outedâ€. So, as a Yorkshireman, I have decided to tell the world. I know that some of my political friends may never speak to me again and may even delete me from Facebook. But the times are such that I have to be honest and come out of the closet. Yes... I am a member of the United Kingdom Independence Party.
It wasn’t something I did easily. I have not been a fan of conventional political parties for a long time. I hold professional politicians in deep distrust and wonder whom they really serve, their own self-interests or us? That was until I interviewed a high-ranking member of UKIP for a radio programme that I presented. Suddenly my interest in politics was rekindled. Here was a man with deeply held views, passionate about what he believed. I knew that every time I wrote in this fine newspaper about Europe, politics and morality then my mailbox would be filled with people who thought like me. People cried out for common sense in politics and a return to sensible policies. It was when I discovered UKIP that I found a party that held fast to these ideals.
For the first time in many years I had found a political group that actually stood for something and wasn’t afraid to say it. They had rightly predicted that Europe would start to quake and fall apart. Their words have been proven to be true as we see every day, the sick state of Europe trying to stay alive for another month, threatening to bring us all down with it. What attracted me even more to UKIP was that it wasn’t just a one trick pony. Definite policies on education, defence, public spending, wind farms and immigration made the party too appealing to ignore.
It was not just a party for the European elections. With policies that struck a resonance with my beliefs, I felt I had to become involved. No longer was I prepared to just vote for a party, I decided to join and in joining I felt empowered. In UKIP, I have found my “Arab Springâ€. It was a cathartic moment. Soon I realised that UKIP has members 
from all backgrounds, faiths, sexualities and ethnic groups, committed to the cause of putting Britain back on its own two feet and growing as a nation. The UKIP candidates were not career politicians, but ordinary women and men who like me want to see a better country to live in. 
They are so unlike the monochrome Tories and Labour politicians as they actually have something interesting to say.
More surprising is that people from all walks of life are thinking about joining. Politics is coming alive again; in UKIP, people are finding a cause to support. To me, it is as if UKIP is no longer a protest vote, but a viable alternative to the three party system. In Yorkshire and the North East, it is fast becoming the party of opposition. It is also a party that is bringing life and real debate back into politics. It is engaging people with the big questions and giving them a voice. I am not an activist, just a member, but I am involved. I no longer whine and moan about the state of the country, I can now do something about it.
It has been hard not to vote for the party I had supported since my youth. Sadly, it had changed beyond recognition. No longer is it a party of the people. No longer is it a party of Yorkshire. Politicians appear to be out of touch with the needs of this vounty. We are expected to mindlessly return MPs to the Westminster gravy train without question and then have our county ignored for the rest of their term in office. It soon became clear that David Cameron was a man who cannot be trusted to do the right thing for Yorkshire people. He plays a very stupid game of pretence, saying he is a Eurosceptic whilst all the time dragging us deeper into the mire. Likewise, Ed Milliband is shackled to the will of the trade unions and with the Liberal Democrats slowly imploding; the only alternative for Yorkshire is UKIP.
Recent elections have shown that UKIP can make great advances at the ballot box. The only thing stopping them from winning is the doubtful postal votes that were brought in for convenience and have led to political connivance. It is now time for this to be stopped as it threatens democracy and undermines our faith in a political system. Again, I know UKIP will speak boldly on this issue and bring honourable and upstanding characteristics back into politics. Times certainly are changing. I feel excited that I am a very small part in a political party that wants to see Yorkshire thriving again. It was for that reason I got off the fence and signed on the dotted line.
David Cameron position on gay marriage: Unworkable and dishonest
David Cameron today declared that he supports the right of churches and other denominations to conduct same sex marriages. But he repeated his idea that his will be able to protect those denominations that do not wish to conduct these ceremonies from the European Courts. UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP said: "This is just not possible. While of course UKIP supports those denominations who wish to conduct gay marriage ceremonies, the statement from the Prime Minister seems to be both unworkable and dishonest. Firstly, he is talking about churches, not denominations. If parish was set against parish in this way his proposal would rip apart the established churches in this country."
"If this were to be allowed to happen, if one parish could, and another couldn't, or one diocese could and another couldn't, the way would be open both to legal challenge to those that rejected gay marriage, and for years of internecine strife within the church. He repeats that he is planning to ensure an absolute guarantee that those who oppose gay marriage would not be forced to do so, saying: 'If there is any church or any synagogue or any mosque that doesn't want to have a gay marriage it will not, absolutely must not, be forced to hold it'. But as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, a member of the European Union and subject to the rulings of the European Courts, both of Justice and Human Rights, he does not have the right, nor the power to make such a guarantee.
"It is dishonest in the extreme for him to suggest that he does. That he is making these statement before the release of the Government's consultation just shows the contempt with which he holds public opinion on the matter".
Former Mayor joins UKIP
Mark Hughes, a former leader of North Hertfordshire District Council, who was Mayor of Royston in 1990/91, has joined UKIP. On joining UKIP, Mark Hughes said “Colleagues became friends and I had the honour to hold office within my local party, serve almost a decade as a Conservative councillor, and twice contest a General Election as a Conservative Parliamentary candidate. The Conservative Party is no longer reflecting the views of the majority of its membership and even less so the electorate as a whole. The UK is sleepwalking into oblivion, and the ability to determine our way of life is being destroyed by the undemocratic European Union.â€
Sutton Council by-election result
UKIP candidate Jeremy Wraith took 9.4% of the vote at a Council by-election in London on Thursday. The results were as follows:
Lib Dem 1034 (53.2%)
Con 402 (20.7%)
Labour 289 (14.9%)
UKIP 182 (9.4%)
Green 32 (1.6%)
And finally….
If your blood pressure is high I suggest that you avoid clicking on this link â€" which details the most breathtaking honesty from the European Union, in which it is made quite clear that it wants national Parliaments to cede more power to the European Union government. National Parliaments, it argues, "are not in the best position" to take the "common interest" of the union into account. The full article can be read at http://euobserver.com/political/118438. Truly spine-chilling stuff.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
It's been another busy week for the Party, and this week's attention has been on both Nigel Farage's Newsnight and the MEPs doing their bit to generate publicity out in Strasbourg. The MEPs have certainly been on fine form, and for me it was Nigel Farage and William Dartmouth who have caught the eye since the last newsletter was circulated.
We're at a time when the Party is achieving record attention in the media, and one consequence of that will be greater scrutiny of the Party. Now more than ever, we need to show a united front and ensure that we all put Party above personal gain. We are, slowly but surely, gaining ground in British politics and we must take care to do nothing that could put that at risk.
If you're in the Eastern Counties, don't forget to watch our Party Director Lisa Duffy on the Sunday Politics tomorrow!
Nigel Farage on the Eurozone
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP was in superb form in Strasbourg this week, pointing out the way that the European Union seems addicted to throwing money at the problem of the euro: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmDq4Sjx3j8&feature=youtu.be.
William Dartmouth MEP destroys opponents in debate on European Arrest Warrant
One of the other highlights of this week was William Dartmouth's performance on the European Arrest Warrant, which is interesting to show just how poor the opposing case really is. Again, you can see it for yourself at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUd0H6j3GhM&feature=youtu.be.
UKIP Chairman Steve Crowther on politics.co.uk podcast
Steve Crowther, the Party Chairman, provided a convincing explanation of why UKIP isn't just a flash in the pan and is here to stay in an interview with the influential politics.co.uk website. The whole piece can be heard at http://politics.co.uk/podcast/2012/12/14/podcast-ukip-here-to-stay>.
Update from the Party Chairman
New Chief Executive appointed
I am delighted to announce that the Party has a new Chief Executive, who will share the work of building us up to meet the ever-greater challenges that face us. His name is Will Gilpin, and many of you will have seen him present our new draft Defence Policy on the platform at Birmingham. Will is a former Tornado pilot who has spent the last 10 years working in the private and public sectors, in major IT security environments. He has a Cambridge MA in Computer Science and a BSc in Psychology, makes films and builds websites, so will not only help us to make better use of our web and data assets, but will also be a major contributor to our marketing and messages. He will be London-based, working closely with the Press and Party team, and will start on Monday. I'm sure you will all have a chance to meet him before long.
UKIP's Newsnight
On Wednesday night the whole of Newsnight was dedicated to the theme: Outside Europe (they meant Outside the EU, of course). It featured both Nigel and Tim Congdon extensively, as well as Terry Smith of Tullett Prebon and Sir David Tang (who produced something of a trump card for 'our side', rather unexpectedly). It was spellbinding, not least to see the BBC making a strong case for the possible positive benefits of withdrawal (though they did a balancing piece, it was not as strong); Jeremy Paxman not putting our side under any pressure; Boris Johnson being manoeuvred into saying we should get out if we can't negotiate an (unrealistic) amended deal; and a French Minister more or less telling us to get stuffed.
If you haven't seen it, it just want to enjoy it again, it's here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01pdymw/Newsnight_12_12_2012/.
Welcome back Mike
I'm delighted to say that Mike Nattrass MEP has rejoined the EFD Group. Mike is working hard on Transport policy for us, and it's great to have him back with the group, following our hugely successful Conference in Birmingham.
UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP welcomes the 'green light' for fracking
UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall, has welcomed the news that the government has given the go-ahead for fracking to be resumed in Lancashire. "This is a welcome step in the right direction and while there must be safeguards in place we must not let environmentalists pour cold water on this exciting technology," Mr Nuttall said.
"Investigations have shown that in the North West alone we are sitting on 4.6 trillion cubic feet of shale. This means we have the largest shale resources in Europe which can provide energy in the UK for up to 50 years and create tens of thousands of jobs in the North West of England. The Committee on Climate Change is playing down the fantastic potential of shale gas to safeguard our energy supplies and bring down prices, as it has in the US. But that is because they are blindly committed to their 'green' agenda and fear cash will be taken from renewables.
"That's a good thing in my book, public money is being thrown away to meet impossible renewable targets laid down by the EU and meanwhile more and more people are being pushed into fuel poverty," said Mr Nuttall, a member of the EU Environmental Committee.
UKIP wins Council seat in Adur
In an area where the parish council is contested by political party candidates, UKIP were up against Lib Dem / Conservative candidates. The result was UKIP 174, Con 95, Lib Dem 84 – UKIP being just 5 votes short of beating the other two combined. Congratulations to UKIP's newest councillor, Cllr. Hilsum!
UKIP Party Director Lisa Duffy to feature on Sunday Politics
Look out for Party Director, Lisa Duffy on the Sunday Politics Show (East of England edition) on BBC1 at 11.00am. The regional part of the programme, where Lisa will be debating with Norman Lamb and Ben Gummer will start at approximately 11.30am. Under discussion will be the rise of UKIP and other local matters. In addition, Lisa will be featured as Mayor Ramsay on a BBC4 programme entitled 'A Very English Winter' going out on Sunday night at 8pm.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
We've completed the first set of upgrades to the members' forum , which has added some extra functionality but if there are any 'teething problems' then of course I apologise. The forum is now back open for members to contribute at www.ukip.org.uk. We could now do with an additional couple of moderators. The 'job description' is really about common sense, balance, tact and the ability to cope with criticism. If anyone would like to volunteer for this thankless task, please let me know!
In the last newsletter, I talked about opinion polling and the difference between online and phone polling companies – phone polling companies have UKIP on a much lower share of the vote than internet ones. One interesting quirk is that ComRes – who did an internet poll showing us on 14% of the vote – have since done a phone poll for the Independent putting us on 9% (+3% from last poll). In the Times, a phone poll by Populus put us on 10% of the vote (+6%), which represents UKIP's best ever share of the vote with a phone polling company.
But perhaps it's not the polls that we should be looking to if we want to see the impact that UKIP is making – today's Daily Telegraph features a cartoon which is incredibly heartening to UKIP and I commend it to you. The link is currently online at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/cartoon/ but you will need to view it today. Party Chairman Steve Crowther asked "Can you imagine the look on David Cameron's face on opening his Telegraph this morning?"
One in four illegal immigrants in the EU are in the UK
The Daily Express has reported that there are now an estimated 863,000 illegal immigrants in the UK – more than a quarter of the total across Europe. UKIP's Gerard Batten MEP was quoted as saying "This is an astonishing number and if that was the scale of the problem in 2008 what on earth will it be like now? My everyday experience as an London MEP shows that this is probably a gross underestimate. We need to take back control of our borders from Europe and bring in the kind of measures that will cut the size of the problem." To see the full story, please visit http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/365637/Scandal-of-UK-s-863-000-illegal-immigrants-one-in-four-of-the-EU-s-total.
Lord Ashcroft polling finds the UKIP 'threat to the Conservatives' isn't limited to Europe
It can hardly be news to anyone in UKIP that we're about more than just the European Union – but the Conservative Party appears to only just be waking up to that fact.
A massive poll undertaken by the Tory party has confirmed its own worst fears: its members are flocking to UKIP for more reasons than its stand on the European Union.
The survey of 20,000 people shows UKIP's support comes from those concerned with immigration, welfare, the deficit and the struggling economy ahead of anything to do with membership of the European Union. It shows that one in 10 of those who voted Conservative at the last general election now support UKIP. It also suggested that even among those voters who currently back UKIP, only seven per cent name resolving relations with Brussels as the single most important issue.
The good news for UKIP – bad news for the Tories – was deliverd by their former vice chairman Lord Ashcroft. He told the Daily Mail: "For voters attracted to UKIP, complaints about immigration or the EU are often part of a greater dissatisfaction with the way they see things going in Britain: They told us that schools can't hold nativity plays any more; that you can't fly a flag of St George any more; that you can't call Christmas Christmas any more; that you won't get social housing unless you're an immigrant; and that you can't speak up about these things because you'll be called a racist – but the mainstream political parties, they believe, are too in thrall to the prevailing culture of political correctness to do anything about it. For those drawn to it, UKIP's primary attraction is that it will say things that need to be said but others are scared to say."
UKIP fighting fish discards in the European Parliament
Readers will of course be aware already of the huge scandal of fish discards in the European Union. Because of the appalling way that EU quotas are set, half of all fish caught in the North sea are thrown back - dead. This huge waste has been going on for many years, land is the major cause of the decline of fish numbers. The unnecessary waste of millions of fish each year is symbolic of the European Union itself .
If you're not familiar with the website 'Hugh's Fish Fight', a petition there on the subject has already attracted over 800,000 signatures: http://www.fishfight.net. The matter was discussed by the fisheries committee in the European Parliament.
UKIP leader Nigel Farage MEP today voted in support of an end to discards in the European Parliament fisheries committee. Following today's vote, the legislation will be subject to negotiations between the Commission and the Council before all MEPs vote on the report. Speaking after the vote, Mr Farage said, "While it's a step in the right direction in terms of fisheries management it comes 25 year too late. As long as we remain in the CFP, our territorial waters will continue to be overfished by foreign fleets and taking back national management control would lead to a boom in both our commercial and recreational sectors."
Petition for UKIP to be included in televised debates at the next General Election
Young UKIP member Gary Robinson has set up a petition on the Prime Minister's website demanding that UKIP should be included in the televised debates at the next General Election, given the Party's strength in recent elections and being ahead of the governing Liberal Democrats in most recent opinion polls. The petition states "We believe that if The UK Independence Party or 'UKIP' beat either of the coalition parties (Liberal Democrats or Conservative Party) at the European Elections 2014, then their leader should be allowed to participate and speak as part of any televised leader's debate ahead of the general election". Those interested can sign the petition at http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/43153.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
Happy New Year to all UKIP members! For once, 2012 a happy year politically as it was the time of a meteoric rise for UKIP in the opinion polls. I don't often start a newsletter by quoting a Labour figure such as John Cruddas, but in an article about 2013 (quoted in the Sun newspaper amongst others) he said of Nigel Farage that "My hunch is that he and UKIP will have a great 2013 and an even better 2014 when they may top the European elections. For me, politics was always about two teams — basically left and right. But 2013 will be the breakthrough year of four-party politics, with UKIP the big winners." I certainly hope that he is right, and his case for the UKIP rise to continue gained even more credibility with the Opinium poll in the Observer showing UKIP now on 15% of the vote.
In 2012, the UKIP rise has been sustained by a string of elections. From the Council elections in May to four Parliamentary by-elections and the Police Commissioner elections, we have been able to show ourselves as a major player in British politics. We may not (yet) be in a position to take Parliamentary seats, but by relentlessly beating the Liberal Democrats time and time again we show that we can no longer be considered to be a 'minor' Party. From that single change in the way the Party is perceived flows media attention and slowly but surely, the British public start to see UKIP as a credible alternative rather than just a protest vote.
2013 is likely to be a year with less media interest in elections than 2012 was. It is unlikely that there will be the same string of Parliamentary by-elections, and of course there are no Police Commissioner elections. It is therefore likely that the UKIP performance at the County Council elections due in May will come under far greater scrutiny. Will we reach our potential at those elections? This could be the defining moment of the Party's year and shape how we are seen before the 2014 European election campaign begins. Therefore it is incumbent upon us to do whatever is in our power to ensure a strong showing in those elections. We must field more candidates than ever before, and ruthlessly target those divisions where we have a chance of winning under First Past The Post. Of course, many urban areas (those covered by Metropolitan Borough Councils) will have no elections in 2013. For them, the year will be a time of building and consolidation. Branches would do well to use that time to concentrate campaigning all year round in target wards which could be won on the back of the European elections in 2014, with the polls likely to be held on the same day.
In short, more than in any other year, how successful UKIP is in 2013 will be determined by the hard work and enthusiasm of our activists. With the Party membership having recently passed 20,000 and still rising we are better placed than we have ever been to succeed.
Nigel Farage named top UK politician in MSN poll
Nigel Farage was named as the top UK politician of 2012 in a recent poll on MSN with almost 35,000 participants, although sadly more people still chose 'none of the above' than any of the options. Nigel Farage said "I am delighted by this vote of confidence by the MSN readership. However, the clear message from this poll is that the entire political class is held in contempt. I am just lucky to be held in less contempt than the rest of them." The article can be read at http://news.uk.msn.com/uk/ukip%E2%80%99s-nigel-farage-named-top-uk-politician-of-2012.
Nigel Farage's New Year message
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP produced a New Year's message, which if you have not yet seen it can be found online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=M00Hc3oyHrg. The text of the message is below.
2012 was a remarkable year for UKIP supporters. We began the year on 4.5% in the opinion polls which historically was pretty good for us and it led on at the end of the year to two national Sunday newspapers putting us on an astonishing 14%.
It's been a year of amazing progress; a year which has seen UKIP be regarded as a mainstream political party. And a year that saw all the key campaigning issues that we fought for for years at the centre ground of the national debate in this country. That is terrific news for all of us who have strived long and hard to get these points on the agenda. And I'm particularly pleased to think back to the by-elections, especially the ones we had in Corby, Rotherham, and Middlesbrough. What it showed was that despite the media obsession that UKIP is taking Tory votes - which of course is true - what those Northern constituencies showed is that Labour votes are coming to UKIP in real numbers too.
And that's why Ed Miliband gave that speech at the end of the year, saying that maybe Labour had made some mistakes on immigration. As 2013 comes in we are told that there will be another big speech coming, this time it's by David Cameron. He is going to make the big Europe speech: well of course, we've had one of those before. He gave us a 'cast iron guarantee if he was Prime Minister that there would be a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. Well what would he offer us in January? I can't be sure of the facts but I guess that 'renegotiation' will be at the heart of it and some sort of vague promise that should he win the next General Election, which looks pretty unlikely, there might be a referendum thereafter.
I wouldn't believe Cameron is serious in renegotiation unless he invokes Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty which is the only mechanism by which somebody who wanted to stay in the EU could actually begin a process by which to claw back some powers. I doubt he will do that and I also very much doubt that he will say unequivocally say that we'll have an In/Out referendum before the next General Election and that it will be conducted on a free and fair basis. So whilst I doubt that these things will happen it is of course good news that UKIP is putting the question of an EU referendum on the agenda.
I think that the event that will dominate our campaigning throughout 2013 will simply be this: On the 1st January 2014 we open the doors unconditionally to 29 million people from Bulgaria and Romania. Nearly half the Bulgarian population are living below the poverty line - by which I don't mean some Cameron concept of 'relative poverty': he thinks if you haven't two 4x4s on the drive then you're poor. I mean real poverty. People struggling to feed the family. Frankly, if I were Bulgarian I'd be packing my bags now.
So we're not blaming these people for wanting to better their lives but how can we, given those census figures which showed that four millions people from overseas have settled over the course of the last ten years, and that's without the illegals, so the real figure is nearer five million. What madness can it be that we're opening the door to unlimited numbers from those two countries. We believe it will lead to the next really big migratory wave into this country and we don't think that's desirable on the simple numbers but also on the issues of fairness. How can it be right that someone who comes here can automatically qualify for job seekers allowance, can get housing benefit incredibly quickly: surely the benefits system is there for British families who in many cases for generations have paid into this? And the National Health Service is not there for Europe and the rest of the world, it should be there to look after our own people.
But it's also about jobs and at a time when we have 21% and rising youth unemployment in Britain, what is the sense of having yet more oversupply in the unskilled labour market in this country? Well as far as we are concerned, there is none at all. We will make this a major campaigning issue and we will point out that Lib Dems, Conservative and Labour Party can do nothing about this all the while we are part of the European Union's single market.
And we'll go on battling for no tax on the minimum wage to give people in this country in low paid jobs a real incentive to get off benefits. And we'll go on campaigning for our four million small businesses to have so many of the oppressive regulations, on the environment, on health and safety and work, on employment, to have those lifted off their backs so that they can give youngsters a chance to get into the workplace in this country.
We want this country to trade with Europe, to be friendly with Europe, to settle our relationship with a referendum and then let's get on with not just running our own country but being part of the world. What madness is it that we're not allowed to make our own trade deals with other parts of the world and what we suggest is that the Commonwealth where they speak English and where they like us would be a very good place to start.
In election terms, we have the English county council elections coming up in May of this year. This will be the biggest ever contest of local elections by UKIP: we are getting ready, many of the candidates are already in place and we will keep our eyes out for any opportunities for parliamentary by elections. We have established ourselves in 2012 as a party that doesn't just do well in European elections but is becoming a major figure in the domestic scene and I believe and intend that in 2013 we can take that further. So I wish you all a very happy campaigning 2013.
World At One focus on UKIP
On Boxing Day, UKIP's progress in Ramsey was featured on BBC Radio 4, with both Pete Reeve and Lisa Duffy being interviewed. The piece can be heard at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0YWKI-QnOE. UKIP was featured on the same programme yesterday, from around 20 minutes in to the following clip: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01phf4r/World_at_One_31_12_2012/.
Nigel Farage interviewed in the Daily Mail
A long article in the Daily Mail featured UKIP leader Nigel Farage MEP, and although it was not completely pro-UKIP it was at least reasonably sympathetic. When asked about the Rotherham fostering scandal, Nigel Farage said:
"That was appalling, but it's the tip of the iceberg - it's not the first time UKIP people have been discriminated against. And Mr Cameron is at the top of the discriminators! When the Rotherham foster row broke, Michael Gove was up in minutes saying: "This is outrageous!" Even Miliband said UKIP were a perfectly reasonable group of people. Only one person was rude about us. DAVID CAMERON! At first he retracted his earlier statement [the 2006 one about the fruitcakes and racists]. Fantastic! I was delighted. Then he retracted the retraction, saying: "Not everybody is UKIP is racist!" Can you believe it? I've taken that very, very personally."
To read the article in full please visit http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2254368/So-Mr-Farage-does-UKIPs-leader-German-wife---did-make-kip-spare-room-seven-times-night-fling-Latvian.html.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
The huge news overnight is a poll for the Mail On Sunday which has shown UKIP on 16% of the vote. The newspaper leads with the idea that this would 'cost the Conservatives 51 seats', working on the principle that if UKIP didn't exist and voters returned to the Party they voted for previously then UKIP would cost the Conservatives 51 seats. The figure is based upon a number of assumptions and may, or may not, be accurate. But for me, it is the rest of the poll's data that is particularly interesting. For the first time in a long time, an opinion poll has asked useful questions about UKIP, the European elections, Nigel Farage etc.
First, the headline figures: Labour 38%, Conservatives 29%, UKIP 16%, Lib Dems 11%. The poll is also the first one to ask about voting intentions for the 2014 European elections; the European election voting intention is Labour 31%, Con 24%, UKIP 22%, Lib Dems 11%. This is actually very encouraging – remember that at the 2014 European elections, UKIP will be treated as one of the 'big players' by the media. I think also we can reasonably expect UKIP to be relatively better-funded than at any recent election. Therefore in the course of a campaign there is no reason why we cannot make further progress from this benchmark.
The poll also asked which Party leader people most trust to defend Britain's interests. The results were Cameron 28.1%, Miliband 27.3%, Farage 18.7%, Clegg 8.7% with the remainder undecided or refused to say. This also bodes very well indeed for UKIP. The reason is simple: during an election campaign, the Party leaders are in the media spotlight more. A party which has a popular leader is likely to benefit. Considering previous public perception of UKIP, it's probably also positive that just 31.2% agreed with the sentiment of David Cameron's 'fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists' jibe against UKIP.
What of UKIP's chances at a General Election? An incredible 43.5% stated that they would 'consider voting UKIP at a General Election' – meaning that there really are a lot of people out there who we could convert to our cause. And even better for UKIP, 50.1% of people want Nigel Farage to get a seat at Westminster. That could, I think, bode well for UKIP should the right Parliamentary by-election come up! I suppose I should finish this article with the least interesting part of the poll, the part which confirms what we already know – that the British public aren't keen on the European Union: 56.6% want an in/out referendum, whilst just 26.4% do not. If such a referendum were to be held, the public would vote to leave: 53.6% to 36.1%, with the remaining 10.3% undecided.
Welcome to UKIP, Cllr. Whittle
Mid-Suffolk councillor Frank Whittle has joined UKIP after becoming disillusioned with the Conservatives. He told the East Anglian Daily Times "I am sick and tired of all the political correctness and of politicians who are all mouth and no action. I am known for speaking my mind and this has meant that I have become persona non grata with the local Conservative Party. I am very much looking forward to being a part of UKIP, a party that puts Britain first and which isn't afraid to speak out on the controversial issues of the day." For more information please see http://www.eadt.co.uk/news/politics/mid_suffolk_councillor_frank_whittle_defects_to_ukip_after_becoming_disillusioned_with_tories_1_1783258.
The Sun exposes pro-EU propaganda in schools
The Sun newspaper has exposed a 28-page glossy brochure which claims that the euro is a triumph, accusing the EU of seeking to 'brainwash' children. UKIP member Tim Aker (formerly UKIP's head of policy), who now works as Campaign Manager for Get Britain Out, said "This is nothing more than brainwashing young schoolchildren with half-truths and wishful thinking." The article can be found online at http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/politics/4725740/Anger-at-schools-pro-euro-booklets.html#ixzz2H9fKHrZx.
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP slams uncontrolled immigration in Daily Star
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP has been quoted in a Daily Star article which claims that Britain is set to be 'swamped' by a wave of immigration from Eastern Europe. Nigel was quoted as saying: "The opening of the doors to 29million Romanians and Bulgarians is going to become a huge issue. If I was a Bulgarian, I would be packing now, because 46% of that country is now living in poverty. Not relative poverty – Mr Cameron's concept of poverty is that you haven't got two four-wheel-drives – but genuine poverty." The Daily Star reminded readers that Labour predicted only 15,000 Poles would come to Britain after Poland joined the EU in 2004, but they got the numbers badly wrong, and more than 600,000 immigrants from Poland have since taken up residence here. The full article can be found at http://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/view/289618?123.
UKIP member Brian Lynch selling book to raise money for Save The Children
Brian Lynch, an author of poems and short stories, has written a book to help Save the Children. His most recent publication, Nkoli, hosts an array of fictional stories and poems which reflect events and people from Brian's own lifetime from Churchill and 'the Greatest', to Liz, his beloved wife. There is a common theme running through the stories – be they crime, sci-fi, love, fantasy or pure mystery. All profits from sales. will be donated to Save the Children.
The title 'Nkoli' refers to a short poem about a starving child in Africa, and Brian asks: "Please, help us feed the Nkoli's of this world." Nkoli is available through Amazon, bookshops, Tesco or direct from Brian (brian@blims.freeserve.co.uk) for a cost of £7.99.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
A number of members are asking what will be happening with regard to the members' forum. I hope to be able to provide more information after Monday's NEC meeting.
You may recall that a couple of weeks ago a shock poll conducted by YouGov showed that more people would vote to remain in the European Union than leave in a referendum. This was not in line with other polls and could potentially have been a cause for concern. Normally, opinion polling companies don't ask other relevant questions before an in-out referendum question, as it could tend to distort the results. In the YouGov poll, a number of previous questions about the EU had been asked.
It was always going to be interesting to see what the next poll had to say on the matter, and the Daily Express found earlier this week that people would vote to leave the EU by 56.3% to 43.7%. The article, which is a few days old as I was on holiday at the time it was published, can be found at http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/373785/Express-poll-shows-a-surge-in-support-for-fight-to-quit-EU.
The next big opportunity for UKIP at the ballot box (barring any Parliamentary by-elections in the meantime) will be the County Council elections in May. We already have well over a thousand candidates selected, but there are 2,450 seats up for grabs. If we can make a real effort and get candidates on the ballot paper in the majority of seats (perhaps even in more seats than the Lib Dems?), this will really help to sustain our positive momentum.
I would like to apologise that I am only now circulating the report on the January NEC meeting. Firstly, there was a mix-up where I didn't receive the usual email approving the report. Secondly, I was on holiday last week and so it has had to be delayed. Please see the report below.
Report on January NEC meeting
Present: Nigel Farage, Party Leader (NF), Steve Crowther, Party Chairman (SC), Toby Micklethwait (TM), George Curtis (GC), Neil Hamilton (NH), Michael McGough (MM), Hugh Williams (HW), Paul Nuttall MEP (PN), Alan Bown (AB), David Coburn (DC) (from 11.30am), Steven Woolfe (SWo) (from 12.02pm).
Also present: Michael Greaves, Party Secretary (MG), Pete Reeve, Nominating Officer (PR), Stuart Wheeler, Party Treasurer (SW), Will Gilpin, Chief Executive (WG), Christopher Gill (CG), Lisa Duffy, Party Director (LD), Roger Bird (RB).
Apologies for absence were received from Louise Bours, Andrew Moncreiff and Gerard Batten.
The meeting started at 11.05am.
SC reported that AM has been particularly unwell over the Christmas period; the NEC will send him a card. The minutes of the previous meeting were approved. The NEC confirmed Steve Crowther's decision to remove Olly Neville from his interim role as Chairman of Young Independence after a number of issues had been raised regarding his conduct in the public domain.
The meeting primarily discussed the options for MEP selection for 2014. A report from the sub-committee was considered, but in light of recent events a majority of members felt that the idea of a 'Long Campaign' risked severe internal problems.
NF reminded NEC members that we need strength in depth in candidates as it is possible that we could get a large number of members elected in 2014 if we achieve our aim of winning the European elections. The NEC considered two other proposals which had been put forward for MEP selection.
A consensus was achieved through various indicative votes to provide a steer to the sub-committee as to what the final process should look like. To ensure thoroughness and transparency, the Party is considering using external consultants to administer some of the interview and assessment process. A consensus was reached that candidates must pass the Westminster assessment process before going through the process to stand for the European elections.
The assessment of sitting MEPs was considered. MEPs will have to go through the assessment procedure and this will include an evaluation of their performance in role, with reference to the Code of Conduct signed by all candidates in 2008.
The NEC held a series of indicative votes on various options for the selection procedure, and was able to provide a clear steer to the sub-committee.
One member wondered whether Regional Organisers and Regional Chairmen have an unfair advantage in a membership ballot due to 'name recognition', and whether they should be excluded from standing. The consensus was that the NEC's chosen option minimises any such advantage, and therefore Regional Organisers and Regional Chairmen should be allowed to stand.
The NEC unanimously approved the formation of branches in Lanarkshire, Staffordshire Moorlands, Trafford & Bolton, Bracknell, Portsmouth, Newark, Louth & Horncastle and Bassetlaw.
The increase in Party membership has been a key part of the improved Party finances, with a new 2,000 members in 2 weeks.
Geoffrey Clark has withdrawn from the NEC election.
The NEC confirmed a decision to withdraw membership from an ex-member who had rejoined the Party in a false name, thereby avoiding declaring previous criminal convictions.
In the Leader's Report, NF said it is incredible that a Party without Westminster representation can be doing so well in the opinion polls. We have good, simple messaging and we are ensuring that the bullets hit the target. But we must not be hubristic in terms of the way that we see ourselves. We must not tell members' meetings that we will win large numbers of Westminster seats and sowing a false level of expectation to our members.
The County Council elections are absolutely key and we must have candidates in as many seats as possible. From January 1st next year, we will open up the doors to this country and our social security systems to Bulgaria and Romania. We would estimate half a million in the first two years. Those who claim to be self-employed and seeking work can claim benefits from day one. Having visited a Roma encampment, NF believes the Roma are a minority which is massively oppressed. We must be responsible in terms of the language that we use, and we must understand the plight that these people are in – but that does not mean that the NHS and benefits system are there for others to use.
Despite all our efforts, the majority of the British public have not fully made the link between immigration and the European Union. There is absolutely no reason why we cannot use the County Council elections to make this point as the impact on Council services of immigration is absolutely huge. We must challenge Labour, Lib Dem and Conservative leaders and ask them what they plan to do about it.
NF will do the annual fundraising appeal to the entire database that we have and say that we intend to campaign on this issue. This Spring, we would like to have a national advertising campaign around this issue. We should also be printing leaflets by the million. The Party is exploring what appears to be a very attractive option for opening a new office in central London.
The meeting ended at 4.17pm.
Could UKIP get a place in televised debates at the next General Election?
Whilst David Cameron is clearly running scared of UKIP, the Telegraph reports that we could be one step closer to having Nigel Farage appear in televised debates before the next General Election, as Ed Miliband has indicated that he would be willing to consider UKIP being allowed to appear. The full article can be found at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9840430/Ukip-could-get-a-place-in-TV-election-debates.html. There is a petition on the government website demanding that UKIP should be allowed to take part; this already has nearly 6,000 signatures. You can add your name at http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/43153 if you want to help this campaign.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
Another Parliamentary by-election will soon be upon us in Eastleigh after Chris Huhne changed his plea to guilty and admitted perverting the course of justice. I recall meeting Chris Huhne and his (now estranged) wife during the 2010 General Election campaign as we were debating on Radio 5 Live, ironically on the issue of crime. To say that there seemed to be some friction between the couple would be an understatement.
Politically, a by-election campaign is precisely what UKIP really needs right now. The biggest fear for UKIP in 2013 has to be that the momentum we built up in 2012 could be lost, in the aftermath of Cameron's speech and with only the County Council elections due in May. So far, the opinion polls are holding up reasonably well – we're still on 11% in a poll just published tonight by TNS-BMRB for example. A phone poll after the speech (remember, UKIP usually performs much poorer in phone polls) had us at 10%. But the opportunity to fight a by-election and once again rock the establishment is one that cannot be taken lightly.
Once again, the team have excelled themselves in ensuring that we are well-prepared for this by-election. Thanks to a bit of foresight by the UKIP's NEC and leadership, a letter from UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP was recently sent to every home in the constituency – and as luck would have it, the letter landed on most doorsteps today. Our Party Director Lisa Duffy has already identified possible sites for the UKIP office, and even though the call for candidates has only just gone out there are already a number of potential candidates who have declared their interest. There may be some readers interested in putting their own names forward; if so, please see below.
Party Director: Calling potential candidates for Eastleigh
Lisa Duffy, the UKIP Party Director, has issued a call for people to put their names forward if they wish to be considered as a potential candidate for Eastleigh. Applications are now open and the closing date is Monday 11th February 5pm. Please contact Lisa if you would like to be considered for this seat. If you are not an Approved Candidate you may still apply but will need to sit an assessment in the next few days. Please apply by emailing partydirector@ukip.org
Update on the return of the members' forum
The NEC discussed the members' forum at its meeting earlier today. A fuller explanation will follow in the report on the NEC meeting. Essentially, the NEC has decided that the forum should return but that tighter moderation will be necessary. The forum rules will be redrafted, and new moderators appointed, before the forum comes back. This may initially be for a trial period.
Paul Nuttall MEP in today's Daily Express
UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP has blasted the European Union in the Daily Express over EU plans to spend 2 million euros to 'monitor eurosceptic debate on the internet'. Paul was quoted as saying "Spending that kind of money for EU public servants to become Twitter trolls in office hours is wasteful and truly ridiculous. It strikes me as bizarre that the EU administration is playing such an explicitly political role with a brief to target Eurosceptics – that's code for parties like UKIP – and this is hardly neutral." To read the full article please visit http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/375429/Millions-wasted-on-secret-plot-to-tackle-surge-in-EU-hostility.
UKIP – the only Party to oppose HS2
While all other parties are rallying around this £34 billion waste of time, UKIP wants to make clear the other, less heard, side of the argument about HS2. UKIP Leader Nigel Farage said: "The Government may talk about regeneration and the importance of linking cities in order to create jobs outside London, but high speed rail projects elsewhere have shown that in actual fact it simply leads to more people migrating to the capital city to work, rather than vice versa. It will extend the commuter belt to London beyond Birmingham.
"Yet the cost will be more than £1,000 per household. Many people will never even benefit from High Speed railway and there are lots of people who will actually be blighted by it. People will find homes devalued while swathes of the countryside will be destroyed for no good reason. Many people will simply not be able to afford the fares. The project lines the pockets of the construction industry.
"HS2 will not boost economies in the North. Far from it. It is a loss making scheme. Instead the UK should invest that massive amount of money in developing better infrastructure, including transport between and within towns and cities. This is where the real potential for development lies. The UK is supposedly taking painful austerity measures with huge cuts to services and infrastructure, yet the Government is adamant on spending £34 billion on a service that will only benefit the richest in society. There has been a lot of spin and a lot of propaganda about HS2. But I am sure if people knew the facts, they would most certainly not be in support."
David Cameron's speech and the EU referendum
I have written an article for the local South Yorkshire Politics website about these issues, which some readers may find to be of interest. The other political parties have also written articles, and I must say that I am surprised by the tone of the Conservatives' article which seems designed to poke fun at anyone who is not a Conservative. If you're interested, my article can be found at http://www.sypolitics.org.uk/2013/02/europe-south-yorkshire-a-ukip-perspective/.
And finally...
A couple of lighter historical snippets to finish on. I was reading The London Evening Standard on my way back from the NEC meeting, which reports that it's not just the bones of Richard III that have been found under a car park. Apparently a spine has also been uncovered, leading some Conservative backbenchers to speculate that it's David Cameron's backbone....
A relative of Guy Fawkes has joined UKIP, with the intention of getting into Parliament through more legitimate means than his ancestor. Philip Fawkes has joined UKIP and signalled his intention to seek nomination for a Parliamentary seat. UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP couldn't resist asking the traditional question on Twitter: "Was Guy Fawkes the last man to enter Westminster with honest intentions?"
On a (slightly) more serious note, he said "I'm absolutely delighted to welcome Philip aboard into our ever-expanding team, It is obvious that the blood of rebellion still runs in his veins".
In my view, this story has been blown up out of all proportion. UKIP has an explosion of talent at present, but the media focus only on this new candidate because they have us over a barrel. No doubt I will get a number of fiery responses to this newsletter, but be careful what you say because I have a short fuse. Anyway that's enough of that. I'm off to powder my nose.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
I am delighted to be able to inform you that the Party membership has today gone past 22,000. UKIP membership has risen sharply in recent months with an increase of over 20% year-on-year. Members will of course recall that the Party membership passed 20,000 and then 21,000 within a few weeks of each other. The pace of growth in the Party's membership shows no signs of abating.
There has been huge interest in the Eastleigh by-election. The Party has an office at 38 Market Street near the train station, and an incredible 17 people put their names forward to be the candidate. Cllr. Diane James has been selected as the candidate (more details later in the newsletter). We now desperately need volunteers to come down and help with the campaign. The office will, as usual, be open every day. We urgently need volunteers to turn up to the office at 10am tomorrow morning, for the launch of our candidate. For more information about the Eastleigh campaign or to help out, please contact Lisa Duffy on 07890 110225 or by email at partydirector@ukip.org.
Party Chairman Steve Crowther described our candidate, Diana James, as follows: "Diane James is an absolutely superb candidate for our Eastleigh campaign, which is why the Branch chose her at their hustings on Sunday, against excellent competition. She has very extensive business experience in the pharmaceutical and healthcare fields, including both private and public sectors. She is multi-lingual, highly qualified and experienced, and also has a great track record in local government, albeit as an independent. At a time when some are trying to portray UKIP as a one-man band, lacking depth and short of senior female members, Diane is just the person for us to get behind as we put the cat among the pigeons in Eastleigh."
Final call for volunteer moderators
The UKIP members' forum will be going back up in the next couple of weeks. I will be appointing a number of new moderators before it does. If anyone who has not already expressed an interest would like to become a moderator (or is happy to volunteer) please let me know by replying to this newsletter. I'll be contacting everyone who has volunteered shortly.
UKIP candidate announced for Eastleigh by-election
UKIP is delighted to announce that Cllr. Diane James has been selected as the party's candidate in the Eastleigh by election. Cllr. James, a healthcare expert, became involved in local politics after becoming "utterly disillusioned" with political interference at a local level. She joined UKIP in 2010 after deciding that they were the only party which represented her views on the political scene.
"I joined UKIP not only because of their policy on grammar schools, which I benefitted from when I was younger, but because I believe that the UK would be able to thrive outside the EU. I am honoured to have been selected for Eastleigh by UKIP and I plan to fight hard and show the people of the constituency that they can vote for someone with integrity and commitment; a real opposition to the failed policies of the coalition and the virtually invisible Labour Party.
"There are many local issues in the constituency I will be campaigning on, such as the closure of Ford and the hypocrisy of the Lib Dems over local housing where they have repeatedly misinformed the people of Eastleigh that locals will get priority for new housing. We know that this is illegal under EU law but will the Lib Dems risk their popularity by telling voters the truth?"
UKIP leader Nigel Farage said: "Diane has a successful record as a healthcare and political campaigner and she wants to stand up for ordinary communities who are being so badly affected by the coalition government in this country."
Opinion poll shows UKIP up to 16% in Eastleigh
An opinion poll shows that UKIP support has grown to 16% in Eastleigh, just weeks before polling day. The Survation poll for the Mail on Sunday showed the Liberal Democrats in the lead on 36%, with Conservatives on 33% and Labour on 13%.
Malvern councillor joins UKIP
Councillor Mike Soley, who resigned from the Conservative Party last month, has joined UKIP. He said that he was not permitted to do the job of representing local people by the Conservative Party: "I stood for district councillor to represent the residents of both Malvern Link and the Malvern Hills area in general, not to be forced to vote along party lines on issues which I, and many others, know to be against the wishes of the majority of residents," he said. For more information please visit http://www.malverngazette.co.uk/news/10216501.Councillor_who_quit_the_Tories_joins_UKIP/.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
Well, what a week it's been! In the last few minutes, the results of the Eastleigh by-election have been declared. UKIP has just taken 11,571 votes – 27.8% of the vote – in a Parliamentary by-election, finishing in second place yet again. Not only that, but we were well under two thousand votes short of winning the seat! The result in Eastleigh has been absolutely amazing – remember, less than a fortnight ago the bookmakers had Labour as odds-on to finish ahead of UKIP in third place. But tonight, UKIP has taken its best by-election result ever in a seat where we'd taken just 3.6% of the vote in 2010. This seat was 'supposed' to be a Lib Dem v Conservative marginal in which UKIP would get squeezed. Parties just don't come from so far behind in a 'two-horse-race' to muscle in on the seat.
Yet this time, that's exactly what has happened. We broke the mould. The Lib Dem vote was DOWN by 14.5%, the Conservative vote DOWN by 14% - and the UKIP vote UP by a staggering 24%! Throughout the night, the BBC has repeatedly talked about the UKIP result as the 'big story' of the night. Of course, the UKIP vote was the 'big story' in Rotherham, just like it was in Corby and Middlesbrough and Barnsley. UKIP was the big story of 2012, and although we didn't win the seat, for the first time voters have started to believe that UKIP could take a Parliamentary seat under our First Past The Post system. UKIP candidate Diane James described the result as 'momentous', and attributed our success to more than just a protest vote – saying that "We weren't needing to raise issues. All we were doing was to substantiate that [what they were already saying] and complete the picture by getting them to vote UKIP."
Nigel Farage MEP said "It is a dramatic surge. We got 3.6% here in the General Election. It's been the minimum period for this election to take place, and actually on the votes cast today we're first. Where we're not first of course is on the postal votes, and so the Lib Dem strategy of getting this out of the way was right from their perspective. We're delighted, it's a huge step forward for our Party." With a touch of irony, he added "If the Conservatives hadn't split our vote, we'd have won" - before adding on a more serious note that we had taken votes from across the board – Labour, Lib Dem, Conservative and previous non-voters. Paddy Ashdown even admitted in public what many of us in UKIP have been saying in private: if the Eastleigh campaign had gone on just one more week, UKIP would have won. The momentum was with us.
Congratulations must go to the entire team who made this result possible. Never before have we had so many activists pour into a constituency and I'm told that even on polling day we had over 90 UKIP members out on the ground, telling and getting out the vote. But especially there are two people in particular who deserve the utmost congratulations. Lisa Duffy (Party Director) has managed this campaign with complete professionalism and every by-election adds to the innovation of the UKIP machine. Diane James, our candidate, has been an absolute gem and shown huge dedication in this campaign. Her assured performances on the doorstep and at hustings have been a credit to the Party.
The Conservative Party of course used today as an opportunity to show their 'nasty' side, releasing a leaflet in UKIP colours trying to deceive voters into believing various negative comments about UKIP and persuade them to vote Conservative instead. We had a priceless moment tonight when Paul Nuttall produced a copy of the leaflet on television – to the clear chagrin of Conservative Party chairman Grant Shapps who was on the sofa opposite.
Another beautiful moment of Paul's appearance was when the Liberal Democrat Simon Hughes pointed out how embarrassing it is for the traditional parties, for UKIP to have overtaken Labour and the Conservatives in such a seat as Eastleigh. Paul agreed, but reminded him that UKIP have overtaken the Liberal Democrats in Rotherham, Middlesbrough, Barnsley and Corby – so they have no right to avoid such embarrassment!
On any other night, a UKIP appearance on Question Time would be the top story of the night. Not tonight. But Neil Hamilton's performance was one of real gravitas, and certainly merits a closer look when it's available. At the time of writing this newsletter, it is not YET available on the BBC iplayer but it will soon be available from this link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01r1twc.
Eastleigh by-election results in full
Liberal Democrats – 13,342
Diane James, UKIP – 11,571
Conservative – 10,559
Labour – 4,088
Independent – 768
National Health Action – 392
Beer, Baccy and Crumpet Party – 235
Christian Party – 163
Monster Raving Loony Party – 136
Peace Party – 128
Elvis Loves Pets Party – 72
English Democrats – 70
TUSC – 62
Wessex Regionalist – 30
UKIP stalwart Jim MacArthur dies
I've been informed this evening of the sad news that Jim MacArthur, who stood for UKIP at the Police and Crime Commissioner elections in November in Northamptonshire, has died suddenly at the age of 70. Jim had served in the SAS and later became a successful businessman. Local MEP Derek Clark said "He was an enthusiastic member of the party who ran the local branch with purpose and vigour. He was doing well in the process of persuading people to stand for UKIP in the County Council elections and he will be a sad loss to us. As well as running his own campaign he also spent a lot of time helping our candidate in the Corby by-election and nothing was ever too much trouble for him."
And finally...
I often finish forum newsletters on a lighter note, and this one had me in stitches of laughter.. The winner of the Eastleigh by-election began his acceptance speech by thanking the police. It is rumoured on Twitter that Neil Hamilton responded by saying "Right, because otherwise there wouldn't have been a by-election."
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
We have two big pieces of news today: First of all, Diane James (who was UKIP's candidate at the Eastleigh by-election) will be appearing on Question Time tonight (7th March). UKIP will now have had two representatives on Question Time in two weeks, which is I believe a first for us.
Secondly, the Party's membership continues to rise about as fast as the mileage on my car – ticking over another thousand every few weeks. This morning I received the news that the Party membership has now gone past 23,000 and the surge in membership shows no signs of slowing.
38% of voters considering UKIP
A recent opinion poll by YouGov put us on 12% of the vote (our highest ever recorded with that polling company). In previous newsletters, I've discussed opinion polling in some detail and why it's important not to read too much (or too little) into them. Another recent poll by TNS-BMRB puts UKIP on 14% of the vote (with the Liberal Democrats on 11%). But one of the interesting details is that 38% of people 'would consider' voting for UKIP – suggesting that UKIP could rise further in the polls in the coming months.
YouGov has also published aggregate data from all its polls in February. It is the only polling company which polls every day, and therefore it is able to find enough UKIP voters to get a bigger picture about the kind of people who usually vote UKIP. As this was released at the same time as their poll putting us on 12% of the vote, some people wrongly thought that it was the same opinion poll. These results from February actually found 2,788 UKIP voters – a large sample from which to draw some conclusions.
According to YouGov, UKIP voters consider themselves to be less right-wing than Conservative voters. Specifically, 46% of UKIP voters see themselves as right-wing, compared with 60% of Conservative voters. UKIP voters are more likely to read red-top tabloid newspapers (but still less likely than Labour voters) and less likely to read the 'upmarket' press. Also, more than half of UKIP voters are educated only to GCSE level. This perhaps has some implications for branches when designing County Council election leaflets.
UKIP voters are (slightly) more likely to be religious than Labour and Conservative voters, with 59% of UKIP voters considering themselves to belong to a particular religion. The figures are 56% and 50% for Conservatives and Labour respectively. 57% of UKIP voters are male, with just 43% being female.
A staggering 71% of UKIP voters are aged over 50. This is interesting – and has both positives and negatives. In terms of our long-term future, we would like to have a lot more younger voters. But with older voters being much more likely to vote, and less likely to change their minds about who to vote for, this has to bode well for the chances of UKIP beating our polling result at elections. Remember that the last five Eastleigh by-election polls put UKIP on 13%, 16%, 21%, 21% and 21% - yet at the election we actually took 28%. There were a number of factors which led to us outperforming our polling by so much, but this really bodes well for the future.
County Council Elections
With County Council elections happening in many areas across the country on May 2nd, the Party will field more candidates than we have ever done in the past. Just over 2,500 seats are up for grabs and a week ago, the total number of candidates selected passed 1,500. We are aiming to have a candidate in every seat – but at a minimum we would like to reach 2,000 candidates. That means we need people to volunteer to put their names forward.
We believe in democracy – everyone should have the opportunity to vote UKIP if they want to. Some people may wish to stand, not to run a campaign or try to get elected, but simply to give people that opportunity to exercise what should be a democratic right to vote UKIP! Standing at an election may seem quite scary at first, but the actual effort involved in getting on the ballot paper is not that huge. At the Spring Conference in Exeter we will even be running some training for people who want to take that first step and give their local area an opportunity to have a candidate to vote for.
The traditional term for such candidates is 'paper candidate' but actually, they fill a very important role. So, if you would like to be a 'democracy candidate' please let your local branch know. Remember that not every area has County Council elections – in particular those living in the Metropolitan Borough Councils will not have elections this year. Of course, if you live outside an area holding County Council elections but work in it, you will still probably be eligible to stand.
Spring Conference: Not to be missed
UKIP's Spring Conference promises an electric atmosphere after the UKIP surge at Eastleigh. This year's Spring Conference is definitely not to be missed, so I thought I'd put out a quick reminder with the Conference only just over a fortnight away. The main day of the Conference will be Saturday 23rd March, with a training day for candidates and others on 24th March. To book your tickets, please go to http://www.ukip.org/shop/product/view/94-ukip-2013-spring-conference-tickets.
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP reacts to absurd claims by Lib Dem peer
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP has responded to bizarre claims by Liberal Democrat peer Lord Tyler that UKIP is "fuelling the same distrust of foreigners that triggered World War One". In the Daily Mail, Nigel Farage said "I know a lot about the First World War and its origins and I know that in the wake of it we formed something called Yugoslavia to stop Balkan conflicts and look where that got us. It is totally absurd, and I would invite Lord Tyler to go and visit Athens and see real hatred. They now hate the Germans more than at any time since 1945. I want us to have a Europe of independent nation states that trade and co-operate together. But if you force people together against their will, history tells us the long-term outcome will be deeply, deeply unpleasant. You breed extreme nationalism. Lord Tyler is 50 years out of date with his analysis of what Europe is.'"
Roger Helmer MEP welcomes new UKIP councillor
UKIP's Roger Helmer MEP has welcomed UKIP's latest defection, Councillor David Sprayston. Roger Helmer said "Recent by-elections prove UKIP is now the only party resonating with the people of this country. In our region, our membership is growing as voters begin to recognise what UKIP can offer. I look forward to working with Councillor Sprayson as we make every effort to ensure that after May we have more than one UKIP county councillor in Leicestershire."
Following on from last week's poll which put UKIP at 17% of the vote nationally, a poll by ComRes for the Independent on Sunday also puts UKIP on 17%. These are new highs for UKIP. The front page of this morning's Sunday Telegraph also reports on the UKIP rise in the polls. Their polling with ICM shows that a 'key group' of voters are attracted by UKIP's policies on issues like immigration, government spending and same-sex marriage.
Recently, UKIP has been getting councillors elected under First Past The Post – as I reported here, Chris Browne and Louise Bours both had sensational wins at Council by-elections, winning wards traditionally held by the Conservatives. The result from Adur District Council had not yet come in at the time of sending the last newsletter, but the UKIP vote there increased from 7% to 30% - and the UKIP candidate came within just 50 votes of winning. UKIP continues to gain councillors even since I last sent out a newsletter on Thursday night, this time with two more defections joining us.
Councillors join UKIP
Wiltshire councillor Rob Eaton, a former mayor of Melksham, has left the Conservative Party and announced his intention to defend his seat as UKIP. Cllr. Eaton said "I no longer believe any of the three parties represent the people and have become quite disenchanted with the Conservatives. I had lost interest in standing as a Conservative councillor, but when UKIP came along I thought their policies were much closer to what the people want. I have had it in my mind for a year or two, but have been thinking whether to stand down altogether or stand for a party I believe in."
But for sheer timing, the defection of Cllr. Victoria Ayling to UKIP was absolutely perfect. At the Conservative Party Spring Conference, she announced her defection to UKIP by approaching David Cameron to tell him on her way out. She had been the Conservative candidate for Great Grimsby at the 2010 General Election, and was only 700 votes short of winning. UKIP's Spring Conference takes place this weekend in Exeter (some tickets still available) and I think we can safely predict that the mood at the UKIP Spring Conference will be far better than the mood at the Conservatives' one.
Report on March NEC meeting
Present: Steve Crowther, Party Chairman (SC), Nigel Farage MEP, Party Leader (NF), Paul Nuttall MEP, Deputy Leader (PN) George Curtis (GC), Sebastian Fairweather (SF) (from 1.25pm), Gerard Batten MEP (GB), Neil Hamilton (NH), Michael McGough (MM), Hugh Williams (HW), Alan Bown (AB), David Coburn (DC) (from 1.10pm), Chris Pain (CP), Piers Wauchope (PW), Steven Woolfe (SWo), Douglas Denny.
Also present: Pete Reeve, Nominating Officer (PR), Michael Greaves, Party Secretary (MG), Stuart Wheeler, Party Treasurer (SW), Will Gilpin, Chief Executive (WG), Lisa Duffy, Party Director (LD), Jonathan Arnott, General Secretary (JA) (minutes), Rob Burberry (RB). Apologies for absence were received from Louise Bours, who is fighting an election campaign on Thursday [and was elected, as explained above].
The meeting started at 1.06pm. SC welcomed the new NEC members, and the minutes of the previous meeting were approved.
NF reported that sending a letter to every voter in Eastleigh before the start of the campaign was crucial. Much of what we did in Eastleigh went well and will come up under the by-election report itself. We need to get even better at going in earlier. This is all about development. NF wants to write personally to thank every single person who came to Eastleigh to help – and to ask them 'will you join our 48-hour response team'?
On the night in Eastleigh, we won. On the night in Rotherham, we were neck and neck with Labour. We need to get even better at targeting postal voters. We took more votes from the Lib Dems in Eastleigh than we took from the Conservatives. If you include previous non-voters, only a third of our vote came from the Conservative Party. The more publicity we get in the red-tops, the lower the percentage of our vote comes from the Conservatives. Interestingly, in Rotherham and Eastleigh we have taken more votes overall than any other Party.
SC would like to say how much we owe to LD in the work that she does in creating these results. People are saying "we love the way that you campaign" - because we are talking to people in the way that parties used to campaign. We have already sold hundreds of tickets for Spring Conference.
The NEC approved the formation of branches in Bristol, Tewkesbury, Wansbeck, Morpeth, North Warwickshire, Mid Norfolk and Preston. It also approved the splitting of the Hastings and Bexhill branches.
The annual Party Conference will be on 20th and 21st September this year in London. WG hopes that we will have the new London office up and running within the next few weeks. The Party's bank balance remains healthy, but a substantial amount of money was spent on the Eastleigh campaign.
We currently have only 1,543 Council candidates selected for this year's County Council elections. In the South East we have 92% of seats covered, Eastern Counties 84%, and North West 75%. We need to reach at least 2,000 and ideally have a candidate in every seat across the country. There was a substantial discussion about the Local Manifesto, and it was eventually decided not to commit to cutting Council Tax.
Several changes to the Party's Rules of Procedure (Section X, C.3.6, C.3.7, K.19, M.2, W.1.1, AA.1.2, B.4.1.3, B.4.5) were approved. Various ideas were discussed for the Party's 20th anniversary celebrations. The meeting ended at 4.59pm.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
The UKIP membership has now passed 24,000. This happened a few days ago, so my apologies for not mentioning it in the previous forum newsletter. I was rather caught up by the other big story (the by-election campaign in South Shields), where I understand that a number of people have put their names forward as potential candidates.
Winning Council seats has started to become 'business as usual' for UKIP, as the Party has won a Council by-election for the fourth week in a row. Louise Bours started this trend, followed by Chris Browne, Lawrence Webb – and now Denis Allen. Of course, the number of Council by-elections will diminish as we get closer to the 'main' election day of May 2nd, but long may this trend continue! The result for the Dothill ward of Wellington Town Council was:
UKIP – Denis Allen – 303
Labour – 151
Conservative - 108
Lib Dem – 90
Not only did Denis Allen get elected with 46% of the vote, he also took more votes than Labour and the Conservatives combined!
Nigel Farage public meetings 3rd and 5th April
On Wednesday 3rd April, UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP will be holding a public meeting at the Worcester Guildhall. Nigel Farage will spend the rest of Wednesday and Thursday on the campaign trail in the West Midlands, meeting local voters and campaigning against HS2 alongside local MEP Mike Nattrass. Mike Nattrass said "The two-day tour of the region will give us the opportunity to meet many local people who feel bitterly let down by the tired old Lib/Lab/Con party which appears now to be a political amalgamation based on a single policy...."Let the EU rule."
From there, Nigel Farage will travel to Gravesend where there will be another chance for members of the public to hear him speak. On Friday 5th April at 7.30pm there will be a public meeting in Gravesend with UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP. The venue will be the Best Western Hotel, Gravesend, DA12 5UQ. Daily Mail columnist Simon Heffer will also be speaking at the meeting, for which tickets are free. If you are interested in attending (or better still, if you know any non-UKIP members who might like to come), then tickets can be booked by email at nigelsmeeting@gmail.com or by phone on 01634 868269.
Gerard Batten in the Daily Express
UKIP's Gerard Batten MEP was quoted in the Daily Express after a Romanian criminal gang was jailed for a total of 82 years. The case was interesting for the judge's comments, which were clear and unequivocal: "There has been recent comment in the press and elsewhere suggesting that next year will bring a large influx of migrants from eastern Europe. Anyone who comes to the UK intent to commit serious crime must clearly understand that any such abuse of the hospitality of this country and its people will be severely punished.
"That is a warning which must firmly be emphasised by our courts and clearly understood by those with such intent. No one should think for a moment that the courts of the UK will be a soft touch. Hence sentences in a case such as this should serve as a powerful and effective deterrent, not just to home-grown but also to imported criminals."
It is reported that at the time of arrest, one of the criminals had said "I don't care. I go to prison to go on holiday." UKIP's Gerard Batten MEP was quoted in the Express as saying "These are sterling words and are to be applauded," he said. "But it is just a tip of the iceberg of crime and he and British justice are condemned to being unable to deport these people, nor are we able to stop them returning due to our membership of the European Union. And with the relaxing of controls on Bulgarians and Romanians in the new year this is set to get worse." For the full article, please see http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/387867/Keep-out-judge-tells-Romanians-as-gang-is-jailed-for-82-years .
Another councillor jumps ship to UKIP
The Deputy Leader of Horsham District Council has joined UKIP. Roger Arthur becomes the latest in a long line of new UKIP councillors, with a suggestion that there could be more to follow. Roger Arthur said "I had hoped to see a strong sense of conviction re-emerging from within the Tory executive, along with some of the core values that sustained the party in better times. Unfortunately that hope is fading and there is much evidence that the leadership is out of touch with members and with the real world.
"A lot of traditional supporters have been disappointed at the continuing lack of strong direction. Many of those were footsoldiers, who have been departing in their droves, such that quite a few local associations are no longer viable as fighting machines. I regret having to take this action but I need to be free to criticise the current leadership in public and without constraint." For the full story, please see http://www.crawleyobserver.co.uk/news/local/top-horsham-tory-defects-to-ukip-exclusive-1-4950972.
YouGov poll shows UKIP 'most trusted Party' on immigration
A poll released on Tuesday shows (for the second time) that UKIP are trusted more than any other Party on the issue of immigration. 24% of the public would put their faith in UKIP to deal with the issue, compared to 19% for the Conservatives, 12% for the Labour Party and 5% for the Liberal Democrats. Further details of the poll can be found online on the YouGov website at http://yougov.co.uk/news/2013/03/26/ukip-lead-immigration/.
UKIP has 1,727 candidates at the County Council elections this year – just 33 behind the Liberal Democrats across the country. This is a monumental effort, and credit must go to everyone across the country who has helped to achieve this. But imagine what a story it would have been if we had just an extra forty candidates nationally, and had managed to achieve more candidates than the Lib Dems. This is, of course, the reason that we have pushed this so hard in recent weeks. When looking at candidate numbers and results, all comparisons should be made with the 'equivalent point in the electoral cycle' – ie. the time when the same seats were up for grabs, in 2009.
In 2009, we had just 593 candidates. We should remember that four years ago, the Green Party and the BNP both fielded more candidates than UKIP. Such is the BNP's decline (and UKIP's rise) that this year, they field just 100 candidates across the country. The Green Party have traditionally done well in getting candidates to stand at the County Council elections, but this year we have almost double their tally of 877.
One interesting piece of trivia is that UKIP are the ONLY Party to field a full slate of candidates in Surrey. A Conservative sitting councillor made a mistake on nomination papers, with Lib Dems and Labour never expecting to field a full slate, leaving UKIP the only Party standing everywhere in Surrey. This must, surely, present us with a fantastic opportunity for a UKIP gain. After another Council by-election success, this time in North-East Lincolnshire, it is now five weeks in a row that UKIP has picked up a seat at a Council by-election. Meanwhile, the total number of UKIP branches has for the first time passed 300. The medium-term aim for the Party is for us to have a branch in every constituency in the country.
But of course the sad news of Margaret Thatcher's death will overshadow everything else in British politics for a while. UKIP members have a diverse range of opinions on her political career, but I hope that none of our members take the disgusting attitude that has been shown by some on the 'left' of British politics, who have 'celebrated' her death.
Statement on the death of Margaret Thatcher
Following the announcement of the death of Margaret Thatcher from a stroke, at the age of 87, UKIP Leader Nigel Farage issued the following statement: "I have always said that Mrs Thatcher was a great inspiration to me personally. Whether you loved her or hated her nobody could deny that she was a great patriot, who believed passionately in this country and her people.
"A towering figure in recent British and political history has passed from the stage. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family." Mr Farage, who is visiting Grantham this afternoon (9 April) to sign the book of remembrance, said that the party would leave to its branches the decision on whether to suspend campaigning for the local elections.
"One of my abiding memories of Mrs Thatcher is that on the morning after the Brighton bombing, she was on the Party Conference platform at 9.00 o'clock, ready to carry on. In recent years she made clear that she believed that we should leave the European Union, so I think it is appropriate we should carry on working. Individual UKIP branches can make their own minds up, and some have decided to suspend campaigning for a period."
Time extended for applications to stand in Portsmouth South
UKIP's NEC has voted to re-open applications for members to stand as the UKIP caniddate in Portsmouth South. Previously, we had received information suggesting that a snap election would be called and therefore applications had closed last month. Given that the election has not yet been called, it seemed fair to extend the deadline and allow further applications. Therefore, anyone who wishes their name to be considered should contact Lisa Duffy at partydirector@ukip.org immediately.
Nigel Farage Common Sense Tour goes down a storm
The Nigel Farage 'Common Sense Tour' has been reported in local and national press, showing that UKIP aren't afraid to talk to real voters in public meetings, unlike the stage-managed audiences of other parties. Every single meeting has packed out venues, with some bursting at the seams. But if one appearance sums up what this tour is all about, it must be the meeting at the Worcester Guildhall.
At Worcester, the venue was overcrowded (and health and safety officials over-zealous) when 350 people turned up to a venue able to hold just 180. As people moaned outside the hall about being denied entrance, Nigel Farage went up to a balcony – and addressed the crowd waiting outside with an impromptu speech. He began with the words "Thank you all so much for coming tonight. I am so sorry EU health and safety rules make it impossible to let more of you inside." The speech calmed the crowd outside, and showed just how determined UKIP are to get the message across (to say nothing of how determined people are to hear it). A detailed article about the tour in the Daily Telegraph is very much worth a read: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/9976506/Nigel-Farage-savours-the-Heineken-effect.html.
Local government gains make national news
National newspapers have commented on UKIP's rise in local government. The newspapers don't quote Town Council gains (for anyone wondering why I'm quoting 5 UKIP gains in 5 weeks, whilst the newspapers quote UKIP as having made just 3). But the way in which this has been reported is fantastic news for UKIP. This year, we have already gained 30 councillors through both election and defection, whilst we have made more net gains at Council by-elections this year than Labour! UKIP's Local Government spokesman Cllr. Peter Reeve was quoted as saying "There is no longer anywhere in the country where a Ukip vote fails to make a difference. We are winning councillors through our ideas and winning seats through our hard work." If you want to read the full story, there is a choice of any of a number of newspapers but I'll quote the Telegraph article here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9974498/Ukip-defections-surge-in-local-election-threat-to-Tories.html.
North East Lincolnshire Council result in full
Congratulations to Stephen Harness, who won his Council by-election on North-East Lincolnshire Council on Thursday. He becomes the second UKIP representative on that Council, joining Ron Shepherd who was elected in May last year.
This by-election always looked like a good chance for a UKIP gain, and the final result did not disappoint – with UKIP the only Party to surpass 1,000 votes. The result in full:
Stephen Harness – UKIP – 1098
Con 738
Lab 470
Lib Dem 311
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
Dear Friends and Supporters,
The latest opinion poll on attitudes towards the EU shows that we're not the only ones who are angry at the European Union. According to the Eurobarometer poll, 69% of the Great British Public are dissatisfied with the EU and in Spain that number rises to 72%. Can you blame them? The Euro has been a disaster and unemployment is at a critical level. I am quoted in this morning's Daily Express saying that our In/Out referendum can't come soon enough. The contagion will soon reach the UK, especially as we're due to pay £6.2bn to get even more poor countries into the Euro!
This week the government failed in its bid to deport Abu Qatada to Jordan. This is frankly disgraceful. The European Convention on Human Rights, of which the EU is now a member, binds the government. The simple fact is while we're in the EU and ECHR, Qatada stays. It shows where the government's priorities lie. The only way to deport Qatada – and the slew of other foreign criminals and terrorists – is to Get Britain Out of both the ECHR and the EU.
As each day goes by, we are closer to being forced to open up our borders even more to jobless Bulgarians and Romanians. The BBC tried to skew the debate with a poll on Newsnight this week. Trying to belittle our concerns about the wave of immigration to come, they said only a few per cent would arrive. This translates into 50,000 a year, which could be an underestimate!
Romania and Bulgaria could be the tip of the iceberg, however. Last week the EU formally proposed Serbia's accession to the EU. This is yet another poor Eastern European nation, of over 7 million people, who have masses to gain from EU membership and little to give and if we don't get out of the EU quickly, our contributions to EU coffers will increase and more jobs will be taken from the British people. Give it a few years and we'll be talking about the next wave. Even this afternoon news has broken that Brussels wants to make it easier for EU migrants to move to Britain. As the article discloses, "new Brussels proposals today defy British protests over benefit tourism and abuse of European free movement rules by making it easier for migrants to move to Britain including 'redress against any breach of rights'". The UK could sink under this tsunami!
Of course, a fact we all know, the only way regain control of our borders is to Get Britain Out of the EU – as soon as possible.
Thank you all for your continued support, please do pass these emails onto your friends and family and encourage them to sign up to receive our bulletins.
Best wishes,
Tim Aker
Campaign Director
P.S. We have been overwhelmed with orders for our Immigration, Jobs and the EU leaflet and have had to get some more printed. If you would like some to pass on to as many people as possible, please reply to this email. You can download a version of our leaflet here.
P.P.S. If you like our work and are able to contribute to our fighting fund, then please donate here. Every penny counts and it's a penny the EU can't get its hands on! Thank you.
You will no doubt have noticed that over the last few days, the UK Independence Party has been under considerable attack from the Conservatives (and others). It appears that they have spent time, money and resources to go through the entire list of UKIP candidates across the country and investigate them, including comments on Facebook and Twitter going back up to 5 years.
This seems to be unprecedented, and indeed we strongly suspect that they are vetting our candidates far more strongly than they vetted their own! It may be that there are a small number of cases where the Party needs to take action, where a candidate's declaration form failed to inform us of aspects of their past. But for the most part, it's worth noting that after coming under intense scrutiny there have been problems with just 0.3% of our candidates. It's possible to point out that Labour, Lib Dems and Conservatives have each had far greater problems recently with candidates. A Lib Dem councillor for instance has been remanded in custody accused of planting a home-made bomb under a car (a total of 14 cars having been attacked in the neighbourhood). Yet of course, it is UKIP that seems to have made front-page news!
UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP has pointed out that Council candidates are not like MPs or MEPs; they are hard-working people seeking to represent their local communities. UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP and Party Chairman Steve Crowther have also pointed out that the campaign against us shows that we're now 'playing with the big boys' of politics, and can expect such tactics. Either way, we certainly have them rattled. With reference to the story in the Daily Mirror today, the Party Chairman has released the following statement: "We understand that Mr Wood contacted the police some days ago to report that his Facebook page had been hacked and taken over. We have suspended his candidacy pending the outcome of that investigation."
With the County Council elections under 48 hours away, what impact has this onslaught had on the opinion polls? Is UKIP support suddenly slipping? Far from it – YouGov today puts us on 14% of the vote (beating our previous record of 13% with YouGov). We must hold our nerve, and our candidates must of course remember for the next couple of days that they are in the public eye when making any comments on social media. Then, we can look forward to some fantastic results on Thursday night (and Friday).
Reports from South Shields suggest another amazing result for UKIP is likely in the Parliamentary by-election. It has proved to be almost impossible to find any Conservative or Liberal Democrat voters in the constituency, which appears now to be a straight fight between Labour and UKIP. Labour has only been under 50% of the vote once in South Shields since 1935, so it would be a tough ask to gain our first MP. But we certainly anticipate making a few waves once again with a huge UKIP vote.
Help with reporting results
One of the big differences with the 2012 Council election results was that we were much more efficient in collecting and analysing the results of votes as they came in. We were able to state in public in real time how we were doing across the country, and this played a significant part in ensuring that the media coverage reflected the many successes that we had. This year, the task of tracking 1,800 candidates (the 1,727 widely reported plus 11 in Wales and 61 Council by-election candidates) is a huge one. Therefore, we are seeking volunteers to assist. Please let me (Jonathan Arnott) know if you are able to help by replying to this forum newsletter including your name, email address and telephone number. Volunteers will need to be able to:
1. Answer the phone to candidates and record them on a spreadsheet provided.
2. Use the internet (eg. Council websites, newspaper websites, Twitter) to find results where they have not been phoned in to you.
3. Be available EITHER from 11pm to 3am on Thursday night, OR from 11am to 5pm on Friday during the day.
4. Email an updated version of the spreadsheet every 30-45 minutes so that it can be compiled into the national results.
Please state clearly whether you're able to help on Thursday night or Friday morning in your email. We do have some people already so if you offer to help and don't hear anything back, it will mean that we already have more than enough volunteers by that point. We need in total 5 volunteers for the Thursday night, and 12 for the Friday.
UKIP councillor David Potts dies
The sad news from South Tyneside is that UKIP councillor David Potts has died, at the age of just 30. He died with his family at his side at his home following a long battle with alcohol. David was a colourful character who made an impression on everyone he met, and will be remembered as a councillor who really cared about the people he represented. For more information please see this report in the local newspaper: http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-east-news/todays-news/2013/04/30/tributes-paid-after-south-tyneside-councillor-david-potts-dies-aged-30-61634-33257184/.
Report on April NEC meeting
Present: Paul Nuttall MEP, Deputy Leader (PN) George Curtis (GC), Sebastian Fairweather (SF), Gerard Batten MEP (GB), Neil Hamilton (NH), Michael McGough (MM), David Coburn (DC), Chris Pain (CP), Piers Wauchope (PW), Steven Woolfe (SWo), Douglas Denny (DD), Stuart Agnew MEP (SA), Louise Bours (LB), Gerard Batten MEP (GB) (from 1.17pm).
Also present: Pete Reeve, Nominating Officer (PR), Stuart Wheeler, Party Treasurer (SW), Will Gilpin, Chief Executive (WG) (from 1.14pm), Lisa Duffy, Party Director (LD), Jonathan Arnott, General Secretary (JA). Apologies for absence were received from Nigel Farage MEP, Party Leader (NF), Steve Crowther (SC), Alan Bown (AB), Hugh Williams (HW), Michael Greaves, Party Secretary (MG).
In the absence of the Party Chairman and Party Leader, the NEC voted unanimously that PN should chair this meeting. The minutes of the previous meeting were approved, subject to one typographical amendment. There were no matters arising.
The appointment for a political strategist for the 2014 European elections was discussed, and a candidate for the job was invited to present. No vote was taken regarding the appointment, a final decision being deferred.
The Spring Conference made a profit and was a fantastic event. The billboard campaign is in full swing with billboards appearing all around the country. Some NEC members wondered how sites were chosen; we took those which were available at the time of booking. For elections in rural areas, the NEC was reminded of the usefulness of boards in farmers' fields.
The 'Common Sense' tour is gaining huge press coverage and has been a success with huge audiences across the country. NF has been visiting paces all over the country meeting people from all walks of life. The NEC approved the principle of a 'Society of UKIP Lawyers', and this will be done through Steven Woolfe.
The NEC approved the formation of branches in Sevenoaks, Preston, Fylde, Ealing, Hackney & Islington, Tower Hamlets, Southwark, Kensington & Chelsea and the splitting of Redbridge & Waltham Forest branch.
The Treasurer's report naturally showed that the Party's finances have worsened since last month, due to the billboard campaign and Parliamentary by-election expenditure. Nevertheless, the position remains far better than previously, over the long term. The NEC provisionally approved the annual accounts of the Party, subject to minor amendments and audit.
The NEC also allowed an additional few days for candidates to apply for Portsmouth South [since closed but already reported in a previous forum newsletter], owing to the by-election having not been called as expected. It was reported that that we will have roughly 1,700 Council election candidates and even the Telegraph is reporting us having an impact in the upcoming local elections. Next year, it is the aim to win hundreds of seats on the back of the Euro elections but this year the aim is to have a large number of second places, which is on-plan for this stage of the electoral cycle.
We have 32 Parliamentary candidates adopted, with a further 164 approved. We are asking for anyone interested in standing for the European Parliament to ensure that they get onto the Approved List as soon as possible. The 'From Adoption to Assessment' sheet has been sent out to branches to help assist members getting on the approved list.
Stuart Agnew gave a presentation on a proposed policy on Bovine TB, which was accepted by the NEC but is not intended to form a major plank of the Party's campaigning.
The meeting ended at 5.25pm.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
I'm writing this overnight, as the South Shields result has come in and the Council by-election results continue to come through. Some Councils are counting tonight, but most will count tomorrow. The figures that I give will be correct at the time of writing, but of course everything will change over the course of the next 12-18 hours as results are declared. There is no need for 'spin': the facts simply speak for themselves. We are doing better than all the predictions, in terms of our national share of the vote. We are winning County Council seats in large numbers, and we are falling just short of winning many more. A huge 'thank you' to everyone who has been working so hard on compiling the results.
South Shields by-election result
Before the by-election result was announced, UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP was quoted as saying: "Anything over 20% will be an absolutely fantastic result considering we had no branch here and had a standing start. The message to the Coalition is you are losing the argument. If I was a Tory MP in a marginal constituency I would be worried. If I was a Labour MP in a marginal I would be worried too. We are not just taking votes from Conservatives. This is the fourth by-election on the trot in the North where Ukip has finished second." Well, UKIP certainly did take more than 20% of the vote, with UKIP's Richard Elvin claiming 24.5% - meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats lost their deposit, taking only just over 1% of the vote. The full result is as follows, on a 39.28% turnout:
Labour - 12,493
Richard Elvin, UKIP - 5,988
Karen Allen, Conservatives - 2,857
Ahmed Khan, Independent candidate - 1,311
Phil Brown, Independent Socialist Party - 750
Lady Dorothy MacBeth Brookes, BNP - 711
Hugh Annand, Lib Dems – 352
Howling Laud Hope, Monster Raving Loony Party - 197
Thomas Darwood, Independent candidate - 57
Facts and figures so far from the County Councils
At the time of writing, UKIP has taken 43 seats already. Not even a quarter of all results have yet been declared (I have the results for just 373), yet we have already surpassed the prediction of political pundits that we would take 40 in total!
UKIP has taken a staggering 16 seats on Lincolnshire County Council. With just a few seats left to declare, it is almost certain that we have denied the Conservatives an overall majority on that Council and we will no doubt become the 'official opposition'.
Elsewhere, Hampshire saw UKIP take 10 seats. In Essex, UKIP took 9 seats – tied with the Lib Dems and Labour. Other wins included a District Council by-election, and seats in Surrey, Dorset and Gloucestershire.
Where UKIP and Labour both stood, we have outpolled them – taking 3 votes to every 2 that Labour take on average. Interestingly, that 3:2 ratio also holds where UKIP and the Liberal Democrats both stand.
Where we are standing, we are taking an average of 26.2% of the vote. I can now predict with confidence that we will take more than 1 million votes – more than we took at the entire General Election in 2010! It's likely that we might even reach 1.5 million.
Where we stood in 2009 and 2013, our vote has gone up by 14.5% on average so far. And in addition to the 43 seats that we have won, we have another 200 second-place finishes.
It only remains for me to thank every hard-working activist from across the country who has made this result possible.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
Very few people predicted the scale of UKIP success at the County Council elections. I covered the South Shields by-election result in yesterday's newsletter, so today I'm putting this newsletter out mainly to give you the facts and figures about the County elections now that the results are effectively all in.
I would like to say a huge 'thank you' to the team of volunteers who assisted me with compiling results from individual Councils to enable us to maintain a national record of all results. The system worked well in general, and for much of the day our information was more up-to-date than the BBC's. A few candidates seemed not to have received the request for information to be sent in to various people across the country who were compiling spreadsheets, but fortunately we had a back-up team of volunteers collecting those results directly from Council websites. Whilst this was time-consuming, we remained up to date throughout the day and enabled the Party's online team to make use of the information on Twitter.
The key facts and figures speak for themselves:
1.25 million votes across the country – more than at the last General Election
UKIP won 154 Council seats (including 6 at District/Unitary by-elections)
Average of 24.6% of the vote where we stood
17 County Council seats in Kent, 16 in Lincolnshire, 12 in Cambridgeshire, 9 in Essex
UKIP will become the 'official opposition' or hold the balance of power on a number of Councils
The Eastern Counties (26.2%) and South East (26.1%) were UKIP's top two performing regions.
878 UKIP candidates finished in second place
776 UKIP candidates took more than 25% of the vote
In wards where UKIP and the Lib Dems went head to head, UKIP took over 300,000 votes more than the Lib Dems
In wards where UKIP and Labour went head to head, UKIP took almost 200,000 votes more than Labour
UKIP finishes ahead of the Conservatives in almost 500 seats across the country
UKIP took the most votes across at least 2 Parliamentary constituencies (Great Yarmouth and Boston & Skegness), possibly more.
The next few months will be a critical time for us. Every single one of our new councillors will be in the spotlight, whether in terms of media interest or more likely because voters will want to see what UKIP councillors are able to achieve in their area. It's worth noting that Pete Reeve was re-elected in Ramsey on 67% of the vote. That shows just how much difference one hard-working councillor can make to the level of UKIP support in their local area. Having a new councillor base will give us opportunities to be more active, supporting local residents. If our councillors are ambassadors for the Party, if they show that they care about the communities that they represent and if they work and vote on behalf of local residents rather than party politics, then people will be convinced that we offer something different.
There is a reason why parties very rarely gain seats at Westminster without first winning Council seats. By winning so many Council seats, we have done two things: firstly, we have removed the 'wasted vote' argument. Secondly, we have created a realistic prospect of taking seats at a General Election. May 2nd 2013 was one of the best nights in the Party's history. The huge question is this: can we build upon Thursday's success to achieve even more in 2014 and 2015?
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
I am delighted to be able to tell you that the Party membership has now passed 26,000. Membership is continuing to grow quickly in the wake of the recent County Council elections. For those wanting to know more information on the recent County Council elections, the full results will once again be available online on the national Party website once current technical issues have been sorted. Please let Damian Wilson (damian@ukip.org) and myself know if you spot any errors. In multi-member wards please don't comment on the calculation of percentages or position.
Meanwhile, the UKIP group on Kent County Council (you may recall that UKIP had 17 members elected in Kent) has chosen Roger Latchford as the leader of the group. Roger Latchford used to be the Deputy Leader of Thanet Council, and has made his views clear on councillors' allowances: "Quite frankly, all of us who stand for election do so because we want to serve the community - we are not in it for financial advantage. It would be quite immoral to increase allowances at this time, when most people are not seeing any pay rises in their jobs."
The first opinion poll with fieldwork undertaken entirely after the recent County Council elections has been published. It shows a record for UKIP with YouGov (16%). Remember that polls are not a crystal ball, able to predict with accuracy what will happen at an election. But they are good indicators of movement. They show trends in public opinion, and it's always best to compare polls undertaken by the same company. Comparing YouGov with YouGov, ComRes with Comres and ICM with ICM is far more enlightening than just looking at the bare numbers. Interestingly, in today's YouGov poll the over-60s (the group most likely to actually vote) break as 31% Conservative, 31% Labour, 28% UKIP. The poll has been reported in the Sun under the headline 'Brits wake up to UKIP'.
If you have a few minutes to spare, I would recommend reading the following article in the Guardian newspaper, which seeks to dispel some myths about UKIP support. The article is very well-written, and for the most part accurate. The article can be found at http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/may/06/ukip-5-things-people-get-wrong.
Nigel Farage article in the Daily Telegraph
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP has written an article in the Daily Telegraph, in which he challenged David Cameron on a referendum: "I am not prepared to wait until the end of 2017, four-and-a-half years, for an insubstantial renegotiation. I cannot trust Mr Cameron, and, I would suggest, nor can anybody else. If he really thinks it is good enough, well all I can say is roll on the European elections in 2014. The Ukip flash in the pan is about to get much bigger." The article can be read in full online at http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/ukip/10041502/Nigel-Lawson-calls-time-on-the-three-pint-Eurosceptic-heroes.html.
UKIP website under attack
Since last Wednesday, the UKIP web server has been under a sustained demand on server attack, believed to be from abroad. While the site was situated on a static server the host providers were able to combat this effectively and after a spike on Friday, it seemed to have subsided.
We had already planned to migrate our new site to a new server on Monday evening and as we went ahead with that, the attacks began again, bringing the site down. We are working with the new hosts and our developers to fix the issue and have reported the problem to the appropriate authorities. We hope to be back live today with our new site.
Applications for MEP selection process to open
UKIP Party Chairman Steve Crowther has issued the following statement regarding applications for MEP candidacy: "Applications for MEP candidacy will open in 7 days' time, on 15 May, in Independence magazine. Aspiring candidates will have until the end of the month to apply, and 10 days to return the completed paperwork.
A pre-requisite of entering the MEP Candidate Assessment will be to be on the Party's (Westminster) Approved Candidates List, ie to have passed the standard assessment programme. If you intend to apply for MEP candidacy and have not yet undergone the standard assessment, please take steps to do so immediately. This applies to everyone; half of our sitting MEPs have done it already, others are booked in. To fix an early appointment, contact Lisa Duffy on 07890 110225 or email partydirector@ukip.org.
Error in the previous forum newsletter
In the last newsletter, I said that at the County Council elections UKIP had taken more votes than any other party in the Havant constituency in Kent. This should have read 'Thanet', not 'Havant'. Havant is of course not in Kent.
Nigel Farage public meeting
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP will be speaking at a public meeting in Hove on Monday 3rd June at 7pm. The venue is Hove Town Hall, Norton Road, Hove, BN3 4AH.
And finally...
Labour peer Alan Sugar has done an interview with the Telegraph newspaper which is remarkable, not least because the opinions he expresses seem to be closer to UKIP than to Labour! If you haven't yet had the chance to read this article, please see http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/the-apprentice/10039253/Lord-Sugar-Weve-turned-into-a-nation-of-wastrels.html.
UKIP's support continues to rise, both in terms of voters and membership. I am informed by Head Office that our membership is now at a record high, and continuing to rise at a phenomenal rate. But the real surprise was ICM's May poll for the Guardian newspaper, which has UKIP on a record 18% of the vote. Regular readers will recall that UKIP tends to get lower shares of the vote in telephone polls and with ICM in particular. For the UKIP vote share to rise with ICM from 9% to 18% in a single month is the biggest movement in public opinion to any party for a very long time.
An article for website politics.co.uk points out that Labour, Conservatives and Liberal Democrats are all down sharply – and that UKIP's surge in support appears to come as much from Labour as it does from the Conservatives.
Another poll, in the Sun, suggests that some Conservative MPs stand to lose their seats to UKIP at the General Election. UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP commented: "Last week's local elections proved we are capable of winning a large number of seats. This study shows we could be a force at every level." To see the full article please go to http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/politics/4924195/UKIP-to-win-8-Tory-seats-at-the-next-General-Election-in-2015.html.
MEP applications open
Copies of Independence News have been landing on doorsteps this week. They contain full details of the selection process and how to apply. Anyone wanting to get hold of a nomination pack should request a nomination pack by email to the dedicated email address mepselection@ukip.org or by post to MEP Selection, Lexdrum House, PO Box 408, Newton Abbot, TQ12 9BG. Nomination packs must be requested by May 31.
Four more councillors join UKIP since election
Since the County Council elections less than a fortnight ago, UKIP have gained four council seats through defections – one on Thanet District Council in Kent, one on Allerdale Borough Council in Cumbria, one on Stocksbridge Town Council in South Yorkshire (over the proposed closure of Stocksbridge Leisure Centre) and one on Ramsgate Town Council in Kent. I am told that the total number of UKIP councillors (above Parish/Town Council level) has now passed 200, and the total including Parish and Town Councils is well over 300. Welcome to all of the new UKIP councillors!
Petition for UKIP to be included in televised debates
I have already circulated this petition previously, which calls for UKIP to be included in the televised debates for the 2015 General Election. But as it seems to be 'doing the rounds' again, and we have had hundreds of new forum members since I last plugged it, I thought it seemed reasonable to send it out again. If you haven't yet signed, you may wish to do so: http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/43153.
Young Independence Universities Officer
Young Independence Universities Officer Liam Porter is building a contacts list of UKIP members who are currently at university. If you are at university, could you please let Liam know by email? Information which would be useful is your name, membership number, the year you will graduate and the university at which you are currently studying. Please contact Liam directly at liamp93@hotmail.co.uk.
Nigel Farage reacts to Cameron 'promise' over referendum
After David Cameron produced the draft Bill for a referendum on the European Union, planned for 2017, UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP has responded: "This promise does not have the weight of law because no parliament can bind its successor. The EU referendum bill is 490 words long with the Scottish Independence Referendum bill is over 62 thousand words. It´s evident, this bill was scrawled up on the back of an envelope in a few hours, and it is meaningless. Cameron has promised to campaign to stay in the EU come what may. He has also made un-kept promises before. No-one believes him now. This bill is the last desperate play on a man in a panic. Sadly for, he has now come onto UKIP turf, and on this issue, UKIP will surely win."
South East Regional Conference
The UKIP South East regional conference will take place on June 8th from 9am to 4pm. Nigel Farage will of course be amongst the list of speakers. The venue will be the Lakeside Country Club, Frimley Green. Tickets are available, priced at £20, from Ray Finch, The Old Grain Store, Church Lane, Lyminster, West Sussex, BN17 7QJ. Special deals have been arranged with the Lakeside hotel, contactable on 01252 838000 and discounted rates can be obtained by quoting the booking reference UKIP001. You can also buy tickets online from the UKIP website here.
And finally....
Chris Huhne has been released just 8 weeks into an 8-month prison sentence for perverting the course of justice. It's often said that 'a week is a long time in politics'. In this case it appears that a week for politicians is the equivalent of exactly a month!
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
A few years ago, the standard political slur against UKIP was to accuse us of somehow being 'racist' or 'BNP light'. Nothing could ever have been further from the truth but it appeared time after time in the press. When UKIP was mentioned in any other context, we were often considered by the media to be a Party of eccentrics. More recently, we have seen the idea that UKIP is 'a party of ex-Conservatives' and a direct threat to the Conservative Party only.
Tonight, we have once again proven that UKIP does not just take votes from the Conservatives. In many working-class areas, UKIP is becoming the alternative to the Labour Party and we do take Labour votes. In Rotherham, in a ward which we didn't even contest last time out in 2012, we have just taken a Council seat from Labour on 46.5% of the vote. Full details to follow later in this newsletter.
The various slurs by our opponents prove only that they don't know how to deal with us – and why should they? UKIP's greatest strength is that our members and activists get involved because we believe in the Party and what it stands for. The old parties may have centuries of tradition, but they lack the passion that is so evident in UKIP. We are not here to play political games, or to change our beliefs from week to week based upon what a focus group might say. At some point our opponents will run out of insults and they will have to engage in a debate which they will no doubt lose.
The other big news of the day is what happened to Nigel Farage on his visit to Scotland. Again, I'll take a look at the Scottish Parliament by-election later in this newsletter. Earlier, Nigel Farage was accosted by a group of protesters shouting such words as "Go home!", "Leave Scotland, go back to England" and "You can stick your Union Jack up your ****". This kind of racist behaviour is of course highly unpleasant, but the protestors bizarrely described themselves as 'anti-racists' in an ironic twist. Security officials sealed Nigel Farage in a pub, and he later left in a police riot van. Nigel Farage described the protest on LBC radio as follows: "If this is the face of Scottish Nationalism it's a pretty ugly picture. "This was dressed up as anti racism protest but it was a pure anti-English thing. I'm accused of being a racist, but it's ok to hate the English. If the police hadn't been there it could have turned very nasty."
UKIP candidate selected for Scottish Parliament by-election
The candidate for the Aberdeen Donside Scottish Parliamentary by-election has been announced as Otto Inglis. Regarding the incident with Nigel Farage, he said to the Journal online newspaper: "In UKIP we believe in freedom of speech and open debate. We don't believe in shouting people down unlike those mindless people who turned up this afternoon...we're happy to engage with them in debate, but shouting people down is against human rights."
Otto Inglis is a barrister who owns his own business. He has stood for the Party previously at the General Election in the Dunfermline & West Fife constituency and for the Lothians constituency list in 2011.
The UKIP National Executive Committee have voted to provide central assistance to the campaign, which promises to be the biggest that the Party has ever run in Scotland.
UKIP gains Council by-election seat in Rawmarsh, Rotherham
UKIP's Caven Vines has just been elected to Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council on an impressive 46.5% of the vote, narrowly beating the Labour Party. Conservatives, BNP, Trade Unionists and the Liberal Democrats all stood, but each got less than 5% of the vote – proving that in many Northern areas, UKIP is now the only real alternative to Labour. The result in full:
Caven Vines – UKIP – 1143
Labour - 1039
Conservative - 107
BNP – 80
TUSC – 60
Lib Dems – 28
One interesting feature which those from outside the area might not immediately notice is that the Rawmarsh ward is not part of the Rotherham constituency where we put in such a huge effort at the Parliamentary by-election. It is in fact in the neighbouring constituency of Wentworth and Dearne. Our opponents therefore cannot claim that this incredible result was purely down to the massive effort that went into the Rotherham Parliamentary seat in November. In UKIP we often talk about the European elections in 2014, but in Rotherham the 2014 Council elections could see significant UKIP gains – both in Rotherham and in Wentworth & Dearne.
Meanwhile, Neil Boxall took 20.3% of the vote in a County Council election in Somerset tonight. The poll had been delayed by two weeks following the death of the original UKIP candidate.
Nigel Farage most popular Party Leader
Another opinion poll has shown that Nigel Farage is the Party Leader doing the best job. Nigel Farage's ratings have improved by 3% since last month, with 40% believing that he is doing a good job compared with just 29% who believe that he is doing a poor job. His net rating of +11% is far better than any other Party Leader. Ed Miliband is at -14%, David Cameron at -21% and Nick Clegg at -37%. The figures come from the latest IPSOS-Mori Leader ratings. On the standard voting intention question UKIP was on 13% of the vote (a very good result for a phone poll) whist the Conservatives are now just 3% behind Labour. It remains to be seen whether there is a sustained Conservative recovery, or whether this is a 'rogue poll'. Labour's lead has fallen back over the last couple of months, but no other poll has shown the gap closing quite so much.
Nadine Dorries
Conservative MP Nadine Dorries has stated that she would like to run as a joint Conservative/UKIP candidate at the next General Election. This is of course very different from the 2010 General Election, when UKIP dropped out of standing in various seats against both Conservatives and Labour where opponents had strong anti-EU credentials.
This suggestion presents an interesting dilemma for UKIP. UKIP Leader Nigel Farage said: "If Nadine Dorries' association come to me and say they've passed a resolution, and they want her to run as a joint candidate in 2015, I will go and ask my local association how they feel but my inclination would be, why not? What on earth is wrong with doing this? I would also say this could apply to other Tories too. It may even apply to one or two of the old Labour types as well.
"This article [in The Spectator] about Nadine, possibly talking about a joint ticket, is something that several more MPs may choose. Then of course, that will present quite a big challenge to Downing Street and David Cameron. Will be he prepared to accept this or not?"
And finally....
Former Defence Secretary Dr. Liam Fox has suggested that UKIP could take the Lib Dems' place in the televised Party Leader debates at the next General Election. He apparently said to the 'In House' Parliamentary magazine about the potential for UKIP inclusion "That's a decision that's got to be taken much closer... but they have no Members of Parliament, so what do you do? Do you have an ICM threshold? In which case, at the moment you would probably have Labour, Conservative and UKIP." This comment will not exactly endear him to his coalition partners...
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
One of UKIP's policies in local government has been to scrap the Cabinet system, which centralises power in the hands of Party elites and a small number of councillors. We have always operated on the basis that local government is about serving the community, not Party political gain.
The real excitement of UKIP's breakthrough at the 2014 County Council elections is that, despite not having taken control of any Councils outright, we are now in a position to influence and to put our policies into practice.
In Cambridgeshire and Norfolk, councils have been pushed to 'no overall control' for the first time in decades. Norfolk chose to depose the Conservative regime, whilst Cambridgeshire voted to sustain it. But the remarkable success lies in UKIP convincing both of those Councils to vote to abolish the Cabinet system and put power back in the hands of local councillors. The next step is of course for UKIP councillors to show that such power is used to stand up for the interests of the people who elected them.
Meanwhile in Cornwall, UKIP's only councillor on Torbay District Council has just been elected as Chairman of the Council. Cllr. Julien Parrot said "I am delighted to have received this recognition by Torbay Council. The Mayor wanted the Bay to be inclusive and I always had an ambition to chair a full council meeting. The Ellacombe ward has been ahead of the curve since 2011 and it's marvellous for UKIP to have one of its candidates elected as chairman. You could describe me as a poacher turned gamekeeper. In the past I've been known to stretch boundaries in council meetings. But now I'm interested in speaking about and promoting all things good in Torbay as well as children's services."
Most of what UKIP stands for can be summed up in three words: Freedom, Independence and Democracy. These key principles dictate our desire to withdraw from the European Union and govern ourselves once more, but they also give us a clear vision for what our local councillors should be doing: helping to bring power back to the people. These are exciting times for the Party, and Norfolk and Cambridgeshire representatives are certainly playing their part.
Labour councillor defects to UKIP
UKIP welcomes councillor Jane Bramley, who has joined UKIP from the Labour Party. She described the Labour whip as being "the final straw that broke the camel's back" over her dissatisfaction with the Labour Party. She was quoted as saying "You could have your own opinion but when push comes to shove you have to vote as dictated. I've had enough of that. I want to represent my constituents in their best interests and not just as laid down by the Whip. "I have not made this decision lightly but having studied UKIP's policies I know I am making the right choice." The move adds a third councillor to the UKIP group on North East Lincolnshire Council – just one behind the Liberal Democrats.
City firms to switch to UKIP?
The Telegraph reports that a number of City donors who previously supported the Conservatives are now in talks with UKIP. This news certainly gives the lie to the claims often made by the pro-EU lobby that the City needs EU membership. With the spectre of the Financial Transaction Tax - which could decimate the City - looming, in fact the interests of those who wish London to remain a world-leading financial centre are best served by UKIP.
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP was quoted as saying "There is a growing feeling that we should be regulating our own country, with the view that we should be a global, not a European, financial centre. It has gone beyond disillusionment. People are wondering what the point of the Conservative party is, now they have handed over all their power to Brussels." If you would like to read the full article please go to http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/banksandfinance/10079115/City-firms-switching-from-Tories-to-UKIP-says-Nigel-Farage.html.
MEPs standing for re-election
UKIP Chairman Steve Crowther asked the sitting MEPs to declare whether they were entering the selection process by this Wednesday, to help other members who might not want to stand against a sitting MEP to decide whether to enter. Those so declaring are Stuart Agnew, Gerard Batten, Godfrey Bloom, William Dartmouth, Nigel Farage, Roger Helmer, Mike Nattrass, Paul Nuttall. Steve expresses his thanks to all the MEPs for making their positions clear.
Prospective applicants should email mepselection@ukip.org to ask for an application form soon – the deadline for collecting application forms is 31st May. Please ensure that you request yours in plenty of time. If you are interested in standing, please email the address given and DO NOT reply to this forum newsletter to express an interest.
Corrections to recent newsletters
The heading entitled "Woolwich Statement: UKIP Killing" should of course have read "Woolwich Killing: UKIP Statement".
Rob Burberry will not now be speaking at the event advertised in the previous newsletter due to his commitments to the South East Regional Conference on 8th June.
The candidate in the delayed poll in Coker, Somerset was Evelyn Boxall, not Neil Boxall.
And finally...
The European Union has now backed down on their plan to ban refillable olive oil containers from restaurants. UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP described the plan on Twitter as "virgin on the ridiculous".
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
In a previous forum newsletter, I informed UKIP members of Paul Nuttall's appearance on Channel 4's Political Slot. This was aimed at driving Labour voters in working-class communities to UKIP, and can now be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43ThqVO4RdM. A few weeks ago, an opinion poll came out which claimed that when UKIP gets over 16% of the vote, new UKIP voters are more likely to come from Labour than the Conservatives. I would always caution against reading too much into a single opinion poll, but other research – not to mention results at elections in areas such as Rotherham - does show at least the potential for UKIP to take substantial numbers of Labour votes.
The big news over the last week is the defection of three independent (former Labour) councillors to UKIP in South Tyneside, leaving UKIP as the official opposition on that Council. This follows the defection of a Labour councillor in Northamptonshire a week ago. Councillor Beverley Mennell said "I have been unhappy with the situation within the Labour group for several months now and I know several of my former colleagues have also expressed similar concerns. UKIP now has more than 600 members in Northampton and that is growing all the time and the party performed well, taking three seats in the recent county council elections. I believe UKIP will stand up for local people's concerns in Northampton in two years and I am confident they will get behind UKIP and we will win more seats." More information on the three defections in South Tyneside will come later in this newsletter, but it is encouraging to see so many ex-Labour Councillors joining the Party.
Internally, the final application forms for the MEP selection process are now coming in. All applicants had to send off for an application pack by 31st May, and had 10 days from the date of receipt of the pack to submit it. Therefore, the final applications will arrive no later than tomorrow (10th June) and the Party will then have a complete list of applicants.
UKIP in Northern Ireland
I attended the UKIP Northern Ireland AGM in Belfast on Thursday night. The Party's support in Northern Ireland is increasing quickly. As well as myself, the speakers were David McNarry MLA and Paul Nuttall MEP with Cllr. Henry Reilly as the Chairman. The first surprise of the night was the sheer number of people who turned up: a venue with space for 70 members had been booked, and the start of the meeting had to be delayed so that a couple of dozen extra seats could be brought in. By the start of the meeting, almost 100 members were in attendance.
David McNarry's intellect and deep understanding of politics was impressive. He inspired confidence in UKIP's potential in Northern Ireland, with the Party planning to field a candidate at the European elections in 2014 for the first time. Previously, UKIP has had Henry Reilly elected to the Newry & Mourne Council. Paul Nuttall's speech was easily the most impressive that I have ever heard him give: full of passion and commitment. He well deserved the standing ovation that he received at the end of his speech.
UKIP now the official opposition on South Tyneside Council
Three former Labour councillors on South Tyneside Council (the area covering South Shields, where UKIP finished a strong second in the recent Parliamentary by-election) have just joined UKIP, leaving the Party as the official opposition on that Council. UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP said ""I am delighted to welcome George, Steve and Linda to the party. "They have a wealth of experience gained while serving their community as independent councillors which can only add to the strength of UKIP."
UKIP South East Conference a huge success
The UKIP South East Conference on Saturday at the prestigious Lakeside venue was a huge success. The good news is that all of the speeches are available for you to watch again online, so there is no need for me to go into too much detail other than to praise the superb overall quality of the speeches. Links to all of the speeches can be found on the Party website at http://www.ukip.org/index.php/newsroom/news/670-se-conference-programme.
UKIP Bromley – Dinner with Nigel Farage
UKIP Bromley has organised a dinner with Nigel Farage on 4th July. If you would like to book your place at the dinner tickets are on sale now for £45.00 each. The ticket will get you entrance, dinner, the chance to enjoy a good social event and Nigel's after-dinner speech. The details are as follows: UKIP Banquet Dinner with Nigel Farage, 4th July 2013, 7pm for 7:30, Oakley House, 358 Bromley Common, Bromley, Kent BR2 8HA. To book tickets please contact branch treasurer Christine Diamond christine@chrisgeorge.plus.com.
UKIP councillor Tony Baker dies
The newly-elected UKIP councillor Tony Baker, who was elected to Worcestershire County Council in May, has died suddenly at the age of 69. UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP said "I offer my sincerest condolences to Tony's family and friends. It was only a few short weeks ago when I saw him last and he was so very obviously looking forward to the job of representing the people of St Mary's. It is a great loss to the town and to UKIP."
Leading the tributes locally was Parliamentary candidate Michael Wrench: "It is with great sadness members of the Wyre Forest UKIP branch try to come to terms with the sudden and unexpected death of our dear friend and colleague councillor Tony Baker. As one of the founder members, Tony was a staunch stalwart of the branch and a driving force behind the party's recent electoral success. He embraced his role as a newly elected county councillor with enthusiasm and immense pride. He will be sadly missed and Kidderminster will be the poorer for his passing, our sympathy and thoughts are extended to his family and friends at this difficult time."
And finally...
Thanks to Chris Adams for pointing out this interesting site, with a map of all the County Council election results 2013 – you can see the results everywhere across the country: http://boundaryassistant.org/elections/local/localelections2013.htm.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
I'm writing this newsletter mainly to confirm to members that at around 2.30pm this afternoon, UKIP's membership reached 30,000 for the first time. At a time when other parties' memberships are declining, ours has continued to rise. I look forward to further increase in the coming months – although the pace of membership increase tends to be slower over the summer. But with Alan Bown having produced almost a million new recruitment leaflets for branches to deliver, hopefully we will see continued growth in the next few months.
UKIP to oppose MP pay rise
Nigel Farage has condemned the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority proposal to increase MPs' pay pointing out that their own poll revealed more than two thirds of MPs thought they were underpaid. "Given that Westminster has given 75% of law making to Brussels then surely MPs should be subject to a 75% cut. That would be my suggestion," Mr Farage said. "But also let's not buy into this concept that IPSA have plucked these figures from out of the blue. Their anonymous survey of MPs showed that they all wanted a big salary increase.
"For the other Party leaders and their MPs to throw their hands up in horror and suggest they had nothing to do with this decision, is frankly ridiculous. Back in January YouGov conducted a survey on behalf of IPSA in which MPs suggested they deserved a 32% pay rise. It's arrogance of the highest order, that while deciding on public sector freezes and cuts or minimal one per cent pay increases, 69% of MPs think that they, on the other hand, are underpaid and should be getting a £86,000 salary. A fifth of them think they deserve something approaching a six-figure salary, especially Conservative MPs. It just goes to show how conditioned they are to say one thing to the public while behind closed doors they are pushing for something completely different; in this case, trying to line their pockets."
Paul Nuttall takes EU to task over Royal Mail privatisation
The UK Government will be helpless to prevent huge job losses and a looming pensions disaster when the Royal Mail is privatised, due to EU regulation. Paul Nuttall MEP, UKIP Deputy Leader points out that Westminster will be hamstrung by the same EU regulations that forced it into privatisation. "It was of course three successive EU Postal Services Directives that created this mess, and under the same law the Government will be banned from giving the Royal Mail any state aid if it catastrophically fails. The Postal Services Directive made it clear that the market for mail delivery had to be opened up to competition. As a result, the more profitable services such as business mail were forced to compete with cheaper foreign competitors while Royal Mail was lumbered with the costly hand-delivery and sorting processes. On top of that, as life has moved progressively online we are sending fewer and fewer letters. The Royal Mail was doomed.
"Now the final nail is in the coffin and the Royal Mail will become fully privatised, it's going to really struggle to compete in the market place. In order to survive there will have to be closures. There will have to be job losses. These employees' shares that are being championed by the Prime Minister will be completely and utterly worthless. But under EU state aid rules the UK Government will be strictly forbidden from helping the Royal Mail with taxpayers' money. It will also be forbidden to help plug the £9 billion pension pot deficit. We will be left with a completely destroyed Royal Mail, once a proud British institution that did so much more than just deliver letters. We can thank the EU for that, and we can also thank the EU when Westminster finally wakes up and realises there's a disaster in the post."
Nigel Farage Belfast speech
Nigel Farage's speech in Belfast earlier this week was recorded and is now available to view on UKIP. The full speech can be seen online at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHvm4o2Kprg&feature=youtu.be.
Head Office email addresses
Rod Peers at Head Office has introduced a new system for emails to Head Office: "To enable us to focus the Head Office operation, and avoid the build-up of e-mails that happened earlier in the year, we have introduced two new e-mail addresses. I'm sure you are all aware that we had well over 1000 emails in the mail@ukip.org inbox earlier in the year and lots of important UKIP business e-mails were delayed as a result of this. To avoid a recurrence we have implemented a new e-mail system. These are as follows:
membership@ukip.org is to be used for changes to members details, addresses, e-mails etc, and for new members joining at the Branch level.
branch@ukip.org is to be used purely for changes to branch officers and for information regarding new branches.
Missing link
In the last forum newsletter, a link to an IPPR report seems to have not gone through properly. The link is http://www.ippr.org/press-releases/111/11004/euroscepticism-in-england-is-english-not-british- - hopefully it will work this time.
Council by-election results
This week's Council by-election results were mixed. Hanover ward in Brighton (a Green-held seat) was always going to be difficult for us as it looked so close. But the Party still managed to take 7%, with the results as follows: Lab 1396 Green 1358 Con 275 UKIP 250 (7%) TUSC 172 Lib Dem 56. A Council by-election in Lincolnshire for Sleaford Holdingham saw UKIP take 12.9% of the vote on a tiny turnout in a ward with a tradition of electing independent candidates: Sleaford Holdingham: Independent 140, Labour 79, Independent 57, UKIP 48 (12.9%), Conservatives 48.
There was also a Town Council by-election to Andover Town Council. An independent candidate (supported by the Conservatives) took 560 votes whilst the UKIP candidate Maurice Cleary took 337 (37.6%).
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP will be on Any Questions this Friday from Keswick – please tune in to Radio 4 at 8pm if you want to listen to him. Over this week, the MEPs will be out in Strasbourg so you might want to look out for some good speeches online!
In June, we narrowly missed out on reaching the 'magic' 30,000 mark for membership. The Head Office system sees old memberships drop off on the first day of each month, but the 'low point' for July is still over 29,700. I am quite optimistic that we will hit 30,000 in July. Can I please, politely, request that readers don't claim that membership has passed 30,000 until it actually does? When it happens I'll inform you as soon as I can.
Nigel Farage mosque visit
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage took part in the Ghousia Mosque open day in Armley, Leeds on Sunday. The open day was put on as part of an ecumenical service by local faith groups, and was used to promote peaceful co-existence between communities following the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby in Woolwich. Prominent at the event was a book about a Muslim legal proscription against terrorism.
Mr Farage spoke about the importance of Commonwealth links and why it is beneficial to have a strict immigration policy. Imam Hafiz Mohd Zeeshan pointed out that those who engage in violence have no place in the community or in religion and he paid tribute to Private Rigby. The event was organised by local UKIP member Mujeeb Bhutto to highlight the continuing contribution made by Asian servicemen and women.
Welsh Assembly by-election candidate selected
Nathan Gill, a staunch local campaigner in Anglesey, has been selected as the UKIP candidate for the forthcoming Welsh Assembly by-election. Nathan has stood in the area many times and is a true local, hard-working candidate. The local branch fielded candidates across Anglesey at the Council elections in May, thanks in no small part to Nathan's hard work.
This is the first Welsh Assembly by-election for seven years, and the local Labour Party has been hit by controversy over its selection process after the chairman of the Labour Party in the island did not even make the shortlist.
Local by-elections round-up
On Thursday, we saw another creditable round of by-election performances by UKIP candidates at Council level. The vote shares varied from 17.5% to 34.6% but, as expected, we were not able to hold on to the seat in Worcestershire. The Party continues to do well across the board in both Conservative and Labour seats. Thursday's results in full are as follows:
Basildon Borough Council, Billericay East
Con 790
Terry Gandy - UKIP - 464 (30%)
Labour 170
Lib Dem – 128
National Front – 3
Dartford Newtown
Labour 536
Conservatives 376
Ivan Burch - UKIP - 268 (22.7%)
Plymouth Southway
Labour 1,247
Peter Berrow - UKIP 764 (26.4%)
Conservative 487
Independent 290
Liberal Democrat 82
Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition 22
Rutland Ketton
Conservative 330
Independent 260
Liam Powell - UKIP 130 (17.5%)
Independent 24
South Tyneside - Cleadon & East Boldon
Labour 991
Conservative 899
Colin Campbell - UKIP – 666 (26.1%)
South Tyneside Primrose
Labour 755
John Stephen Clarke - UKIP – 520 (34.6%)
British National Party 146
Conservative 80
Worcestershire Stourport-on-Severn
Independent Community and Health Concern 1055
John Holden - UKIP – 892 (25.8%)
Conservative 753
Labour 607
Green 77
BNP 39
Liberal Democrats 30
New recruitment leaflet available to branches
A first batch of half a million of the new national leaflet We're Changing Politics (attached*) is now available from Alan Bown's warehouse, along with a further stock of the previous leaflet on Romanian and Bulgarian immigration. To order your leaflets please contact Bown of London, 1 Archway Road, Ramsgate CT11 9EN, on 01843 852087. They are despatched in boxes of 1500, for the price of carriage only.
North West rally
There's still (just) time to purchase your tickets for the upcoming UKIP North West Rally in Liverpool on Saturday. The lineup of speakers is impressive, including Party Leader Nigel Farage MEP and Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP as well as other MEPs and Party spokesmen as well as local luminaries in the North West. The event takes place on Saturday July 6th at the Adelphi Hotel, Liverpool, from 9.45am to 4.30pm. Please contact the North West Regional Office on 01524 387690 to book your tickets.
Party's servers migrated
The Party has done some back-end work on the website servers. Consequently, we should no longer have the same problems with members not receiving the forum newsletters – although I've not been able to verify this before sending. I would like to (hopefully) welcome back readers with BT Internet email addresses to the forum newsletter. If you are on BT Internet and don't receive this message, please let me know...
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
The Welsh Assembly by-election for Ynys Mon is fast approaching, with polling day this Thursday (August 1st). UKIP had a candidate in every ward at the local elections, which makes a massive difference. One of the factors driving the UKIP success in Eastleigh was a track record of working at local elections.
Nathan Gill will make an excellent candidate. The office is open every day from 9am, at 9-11 Boston Street, Holyhead, Anglesey, LL65 1BW. Obviously, I understand that not everyone will be able to make it to Wales. However, you can donate to the campaign from his campaign page at http://www.ukip.org/nathangill.
Report on July NEC meeting
Present: Steve Crowther, Party Chairman (SC), George Curtis (GC), Sebastian Fairweather (SF), Neil Hamilton (NH), Hugh Williams (HW), David Coburn (DC), Piers Wauchope (PW), Douglas Denny (DD). Also present: Stuart Wheeler, Party Treasurer (SW), Will Gilpin, Chief Executive (WG), Pete Reeve, National Nominating Officer (PR), Lisa Duffy, Party Director (LD), Matthew Richardson, Party Secretary (MR), Jonathan Arnott, General Secretary (JA) (minutes), Andrew Moncreiff (AM). Apologies were received from Nigel Farage, Paul Nuttall, Gerard Batten, Louise Bours, Steven Woolfe, Mick McGough, Alan Bown.
The meeting started at 1.16pm. The minutes of the previous meeting were approved with minor amendments. SC reported that 145 people have applied successfully for the MEP selection process; 56 applied unsuccessfully. The interview stage has begun and a psychometric test has been undertaken by the candidates. The recruitment company is giving a graded analysis of each CV. There will be a media test and public speaking test.
The Party will be looking into providing staffing support for Nigel Farage. As Don Ransome has been extremely unwell, Paul Oakden has been appointed as an additional Regional Organiser in the East Midlands. Kevin Mahoney (Wales) and Bill Etheridge (West Midlands) are also taking on regional roles. We have printed half a million new leaflets, and 300,000 on the Bulgarian/Romanian immigration.
The NEC considered the issue of proxy voting for internal UKIP elections, and decided on balance that the security issues involved with proxy voting would be worse than any minor benefit caused by allowing proxy votes. The NEC approved the formation of new branches in Anglesey, Sandwell, Redditch, Erdington & Perry Barr, Kenilworth & Southam, Blyth Valley, Tynedale, Mansfield, Macclesfield, Harwich & North Essex and Clacton.
WG has produced a 'personal security online' guide for Party members, and a draft 'UKIP online practice' for those who have lost control of their account. There have been some technical issues with the database. We have put in a local, cloud and off-site backup for the database. The Treasurer reported that membership is up by almost 60% since early December, and the bank balance continues to grow.
PR reported that we have had our first Group Leaders' meeting for councillors in London. Media training will be delivered for all councillors. Proposed policy documents on localism and unitary authorities will be fed into Tim Aker. We have picked up an executive position on the LGA's Independent Group. We missed out on saving our deposit in Aberdeen Donside by just 41 votes. Nathan Gill was selected as the UKIP candidate for the Anglesey by-election. HW reported a 26% result in Plymouth last week at a Council by-election. The meeting finished at 5.05pm.
Hastings councillor joins UKIP
Councillor John Wilson, who represents Ashdown ward in Hastings, has joined UKIP. He has been a sitting Conservative councillor for 15 years on Hastings Borough Council. Nigel Farage, UKIP leader and MEP for the South East Counties, said: "I am delighted to welcome John to the party, as he will be a great asset. Hastings will be a target in next year's borough council elections and I have every confidence that, with his track record of commitment to the town and ward that he will retain his seat."
Closure of Ford Transit factory
The closure of the Ford transit factory in Southampton has been branded as "scandalous" by UKIP Leader Nigel Farage, with production moving from Swaythling to Turkey thanks to the European Investment Fund. This is purely the result of the European Investment Bank offering a €190 million loan for Ford's relocation last December. The EIB is the bank of the European Union.
"Over 500 British workers are set to lose their jobs thanks to this closure, it is outrageous," said Farage. "Yet again the EU is putting British people out of work and transferring jobs to foreigners. We must be crazy and the fact that the government is allowing this is a scandal. Only UKIP stands up for British workers. We don't believe they are lazy and useless - we believe that they deserve a government that backs and believes in them."
And finally...
A bizarre article in the Independent newspaper suggests changing the voting system for the European elections in order to 'combat the UKIP threat'. However rattled the establishment may be, such a change would be rather difficult politically but the article can be found at http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/european-parliament-elections-ukip-threat-reduced-in-new-system-8730105.html. This isn't even the most bizarre article over the last couple of days – a Guardian article suggested that Britain should have joined the euro....
Last night saw a number of electoral results for UKIP, but the headline was of course the performance in Anglesey where the UKIP vote shot up in the Ynys Mon by-election to the Welsh Assembly. Whilst the media were wondering whether the UKIP vote could cost the Conservatives second place, UKIP's surge to take almost 15% of the vote meant that we finished ahead of both the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats. Whilst Plaid Cymru held the seat, Nathan Gill almost managed to beat the Labour candidate – his 3,099 votes just a couple of hundred votes short of second place.
Nathan Gill has made a tremendous candidate at this election, and has a achieved a well-deserved good result. This will be a massive boost for the Party, showing that we can do well in Assembly elections in Wales. Indeed, it is our best-ever Welsh Assembly result by a considerable margin and provides a stepping stone towards gaining Assembly representation at the next full elections, which include an element of proportional representation.
Anglesey result in full
Plaid Cymru - 12601
Labour - 3300
Nathan Gill - UKIP - 3099 (14.3%)
Conservative - 1843
Liberal Democrats 309
More councillors jump ship to UKIP
Three Conservative councillors on Crawley Borough Council and one on Stevenage have joined UKIP. The new UKIP councillor in Stevenage, Cllr. Marilyn Yarnold-Forrester, said: "I strongly support UKIP's policy of withdrawal from EU membership as it has a huge effect on our authority in regard to issues such as housing, jobs and finance. UKIP is definitely the way forward in local government as we need new thinking and fresh ideas and I want to be a part of that. As a UKIP councillor, I am better able to represent the people of my ward."
No new UKIP peers!
Despite the Coalition Agreement, which pledged to make the House of Lords more proportional to the votes of the electorate, no new UKIP peers were created. Even if we ignore the UKIP surge since the General Election, UKIP's 3%+ of the vote in 2010 should leave the Party in a position to get over 20 new UKIP members of the House of Lords. Yet David Cameron has avoided creating any new UKIP peers (though one new Green Party peer was created).
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage said it was an insult to democracy: "For them granting us peerages would be endorsing us as a bona fide political power, and they are simply unwilling to let anyone else into the club who would challenge the status quo. Instead they are giving appointments to people who pay hundreds of thousands into their party or who have actually been rejected by voters in recent elections.
Quite frankly it's an insult to democracy in the UK, a country that prides itself on being open and fair and the mother of Parliaments. It puts Westminster on a par with a developing world country dictatorship. UKIP supporters up and down the country should be enraged. The message being sent out by the Prime Minister is 'we don't care how you think, we don't care how you feel and not only will we willfully ignore the way you vote we will actively block you from having any role in British politics'."
UKIP concerns over gay marriage realised
One of the key reasons for UKIP's opposition to the legislation on gay marriage was that the Party did not believe government assurances about exemptions for religious organisations, so that no religious group would be forced to conduct such a ceremony if it went against their beliefs.
At the time our response to the government consultation included the following: We are quite sure that, whatever the Government's worthy declaration that it proposes no change to the duties of the Church in relation to the estate of marriage, there will ,very soon after the introduction of gay civil marriage, be a challenge in first the domestic courts of England and Wales and then in the European Court of Human Rights alleging that the exclusion of gay people from the right to have a religious ceremony of marriage is unlawful discrimination against them on the grounds of their sexual orientation.
We believe that, given the current nature of the European Court of Human Rights' attitude to such matters, there is a very strong likelihood that the Court at Strasbourg will agree that it is an unlawful discrimination on those grounds and order the United Kingdom to introduce laws which will force Churches to marry gay people according to their rites, rituals and customs. This conviction is supported by the statement of the Justice Minister, Mr Blunt who is quoted in the Daily Mail of 13th June 2012 saying, "It would be hard to guarantee that clergy would not face court challenges if they refused to preside over same-sex unions."
But an article in the Essex Chronicle shows, precisely as UKIP feared, that the new law – which has only just received Royal Assent - is already going to be challenged in the courts. Barrie Drewett-Barlow intends to take legal action, and was quoted as saying "The only way forward for us now is to make a challenge in the courts against the church." The full article can be found at http://www.essexchronicle.co.uk/Gay-dads-set-sue-church-sex-marriage-opt/story-19597954-detail/story.html.
Council by-elections update
In Amber Valley, a UKIP candidate took 23.5% of the vote, finishing second in the Labour-held ward of Codnor and Waingroves. The result was Labour 557, UKIP 250, Conservatives 219, Liberal Democrats 39.
Sadly, UKIP were not able to hold on to a seat which had been gained in May by just one vote – despite the UKIP vote share going up from 35% to 38% in the meantime. The result, for Thetford West in Norfolk was Labour 1071, UKIP 900, Conservatives 282, Independent 78, Green 40.
In St. Mary's division on Worcestershire County Council, the UKIP candidate also finished in second position with 23.8% of the vote. The results were Conservatives 504, UKIP 442, Labour 388, ICHC 331, Independent 195.
Best wishes
August is often a quiet month for UKIP, but this one has proved to be anything but! There have been some interesting stories in the media, and of course the MEP selection process is also a focus of attention. In this newsletter, some stories which you might have missed over the last few days. I'll begin with Gibraltar, where Paul Nuttall and William Dartmouth have been last week.
UKIP moving forward in Gibraltar
UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP, who has suggested that Gibraltar should have a referendum on having representation at Westminster, went to visit the Rock earlier in the week leading a UKIP delegation. The discussions, according to a statement from the Defenders of Gibraltar, centred around how UKIP could help in highlighting Gibraltar's plight at an EU parliamentary level, with UKIP expressing their support of our cause as well as promising to do their best to support Gibraltar and its people. UKIP South West MEP William Dartmouth also visited, being quoted as saying there is "neither friendship nor free trade" between Spain and Gibraltar.
The Daily Express reports today that on Thursday an official visit to the frontier by Paul Nuttall MEP and a Gibraltarian delegation sparked mayhem when Spanish border guards began filming the visitors. In today's Daily Express, Neil Hamilton's column also featured Gibraltar with some interesting facts and figures about the local economy: http://www.express.co.uk/comment/expresscomment/421252/Why-is-Spain-so-childish.
Candidate shortlist for the European Elections to be announced tomorrow
The candidate list for the European elections 2014 will be announced at midday tomorrow (Monday 12th August) on the members' forum www.ukip.org.uk. These candidates will then go forward to a ballot of Party members, to determine the final positions on the list. Candidates will also be subject to further checks and scrutiny.
Local elections round-up
The elections in 2014 provide a real opportunity for UKIP to make a breakthrough. The extra publicity which will be gained from the European elections is bound to have a positive impact on the UKIP vote at local elections. Likewise, having a strong team of local election candidates will have a positive effect on our European election success. For that reason, it will be vital to get a full slate of candidates for as many Councils as possible. Anyone interested in standing should (assuming there are local elections in your area next year) get in touch with their local branch as soon as possible. Another strong local elections showing next year would start to have other benefits. This year's elections made a big difference to the Party. UKIP currently forms part of the Independent group on the Local Government Association. Thanks to this year's results, Pete Reeve became the Deputy Leader of that Group.
In by-elections UKIP's strongest result this week came in Redcar & Cleveland, where a UKIP candidate took 30% of the vote coming a strong second to Labour. The result in the Skelton ward was as follows:
Labour 745
UKIP 485
Con 176
Ind 170
Lib Dem 40
In Waveney, a UKIP candidate took third place with almost 25% of the vote in the Oulton ward:
Labour 450
Conservatives 329
UKIP 269
Green 23
Lib Dem 21
In the Haydon Wick ward in Swindon, a UKIP candidate took 15.4% of the vote – whilst in Merton, UKIP took 6.7%. Both were third-place finishes. Meanwhile, some Town Council elections saw UKIP just short of election. In the Walldown ward, UKIP took 130 votes compared with the Lib Dems' 186 and 170 (beating Conservatives on 117 and 100). But the other two had ten votes or less in them: Deadwater (Lib Dem 123, UKIP 113, Conservatives 80) and Hogmoor (Conservatives 121, UKIP 112, Lib Dem 103, Independent 71). A complete mixture of results across the country, but congratulations to all candidates for putting their names forward!
Young Independence Conference
Young Independence has unveiled details of the first ever Young Independence Conference. Held on Thursday 19th September, The Old Session House, Farringdon, it's set to be one of the biggest events in the youth wing's history, with the conference being held the day before the main conference kicks off in Westminster Hall. Already, Nigel Farage, Paul Nuttall and Godfrey Bloom have confirmed their attendance with the party also opting to choose a host of external speakers to take to the stage too. With the conference ending at 5pm, attendees will then gather back at the The Old Session house for the YI Summer ball.
YI Chairman Rob Comley said "This is looking to be a cracking event, I am really excited about the group of speakers we have planned, tickets have been in high demand and it's good to see not just YI members attending, but members from Labour and the Conservatives coming along too and taking an interest in what we have to offer. Not only am I pleased to see them attending, but the uptake in people who are completely new and who have never been to a UKIP event before is also high, so I am looking forward to seeing a host of new faces at the event who are eager and looking to get more involved".
Tickets are available to anyone and both tickets to the ball and the conference can be purchased from http://youngindependence.eventbrite.co.uk/. For further details please contact Rob Comley on yi.chairman@ukip.org
Society of UKIP lawyers
The Society of UKIP Lawyers has been formed to provide guidance to the party and help form UKIP policy. All members of UKIP who are lawyers or who have a legal background are invited and urged to join. If you know of any lawyers in your branch, please invite them to contact the chairman, Piers Wauchope, by email on wauchope@hotmail.co.uk
UKIP car stickers
Over the last few weeks, a lot of UKIP members have been pointing out how easy it is to use the 'I'm voting UKIP' car sticker to advertise the Party. If UKIP members with cars all displayed the sticker in their back window, it would get a message across to other motorists throughout the country. These stickers are available for just £1.30 from the UKIP Shop: http://www.ukip.org/shop/product/70-i-m-voting-ukip-window-sticker.
Today's forum newsletter will feature the results of the assessment process for potential UKIP MEP candidates. Steve Crowther, the UKIP Chairman said: "After an exhaustive, multilayered assessment programme, the original 200 individuals who put themselves forward as prospective candidates have been whittled down to the current 78. We are now offering our approved list to the membership to make their choices.
"We are of course delighted with the quality of the people we are putting forward, but it was no easy task. There are many who will be disappointed not to see their names on this list, but that sadly is the nature of a hotly contested selection process. The Assessment Panel have been astonished at the extremely high standard of the candidates we have met, all around the country. There are many talented, capable people who have not made it through this time. I can only thank them for all the hard work and commitment they have shown during the process.
"Those who have not made it through this selection process are nonetheless already on our Approved List to be on our Westminster candidates and we look forward to them being selected for, fighting and winning Westminster seats in 2015".
Local elections round-up
A UKIP candidate in the Shebbear and Langtree ward on Torridge and West Devon council has achieved one of the highest percentage vote shares ever for a UKIP candidate who wasn't elected. Despite taking 42.7% of the vote in a 4-way fight, Penny Mills finished just short of being elected. The votes were Conservative 240, UKIP 217, Green 41, No description 10. Penny Mills is the local chairman of the Campaign to Protect Rural England, and gained publicity through her opposition to wind farms. The candidate with no description was a Liberal Democrat, with a mix-up over nomination papers.
In the North East, Labour held a ward in Hartlepool (Manor House), but UKIP went up from 3rd place to 2nd place and took 19.9% of the vote. The 'Putting Hartlepool First' Party had taken (effectively) second place at an all-up election following boundary changes in 2012. The result was Labour 639, UKIP 226, Putting Hartlepool First 194, Conservatives 74. Congratulations to Tom Hind on an excellent result.
In the Aldridge Central and South ward in Walsall, there was still another second place for UKIP. Whilst second places don't get councillors elected, the fact that UKIP is competing everywhere will certainly bode well for our chances under proportional representation at the next European elections. Liz Hazell was the UKIP candidate, taking 24.4% of the vote. The full result was Conservatives 1254, UKIP 615, Labour 470, Liberal Democrats 114, English Democrats 72.
Thanks, once again, must go to all those who were prepared to put their names forward for election and all those who assisted with the campaigns.
Candidate shortlist for the European Elections - England
The shortlisted candidates for the European elections are as follows. The numbers represent the percentage scores from the assessment process. The letters show the region (NW – North West, SE – South East, E – Eastern, LO – London, NE – North East, YO – Yorkshire, EM – East Midlands, WM – West Midlands, SW – South West).
Nigel Farage (SE) 97
Paul Nuttall (NW) 89
Janice Atkinson (SE) 88
Patrick O'Flynn (E) 87
Stuart Agnew (E) 86
Ray Finch (SE) 85
Jonathan Arnott (NE) 85
Roger Helmer (EM) 85
Paul Oakley (LO) 83
Gerard Batten (LO) 82
Godfrey Bloom (YO) 81
Margot Parker (EM) 81
Tim Aker (E) 81
Andrew Smith (E) 81
Michael McManus (NW) 80
Jill Seymour (WM) 80
Gawain Towler (SW) 80
Julia Reid (SW) 79
Louise Bours (NW) 79
Michael Heaver (E) 78
Andrew McNeilis (LO) 78
Jane Collins (YO) 78
John Tennant (NE) 78
Phil Henrick (WM) 78
Jonathan Bullock (EM) 77
Diane James (SE) 76
Jason Smith (YO) 76
Bill Etheridge (WM) 76
Amjad Bashir (YO) 76
Anthony Brown (LO) 75
Elizabeth Jones (LO) 75
Shneur Odze (NW) 75
Tony McIntyre (SW) 75
James Carver (WM) 75
William Dartmouth (SW) 75
Lawrence Webb (LO) 74
Keith Crawford (SW) 74
Alastair McFarlane (LO) 74
Steven Woolfe (NW) 73
Michael Wrench (WM) 72
Michael Green (WM) 72
Peter Whittle (LO) 72
Robert Smith (SW) 72
Lee Slaughter (NW) 72
Nigel Jones (SE) 72
Mike Hookem (YO) 72
Peter Harper (NW) 71
Simon Strutt (SE) 71
Simon Noble (NW) 71
Andy Monk (E) 71
Patricia Culligan (SE) 71
Alan Stevens (SE) 70
Mick McGough (E) 70
Lyndon Jones (WM) 70
Donna Edmunds (SE) 70
Barry Mahoney (EM) 69
Barry Cooper (SE) 69
Nigel Wickens (EM) 68
Gary Shores (YO) 68
Richard Elvin (NE) 67
Candidate shortlist for the European Elections - Scotland
David Coburn 75
Mike Scott-Hayward 75
Christopher Monckton 73
Otto Inglis 73
Paul Henke 70
Malcolm Macaskill 66
Ross Durance 63
Steven McKeane 62
Kevin Newton 56
Candidate shortlist for the European Elections - Wales
Nathan Gill 83
James Cole 79
Gareth Dunn 76
David Rowlands 74
Caroline Jones 69
Martyn Ford 69
Brian Morris 63
Young Independence update
Tom Dowling, Chairman of the Young Independence branch in Ashford (Kent), has released a single based on the theme of Euroscepticism and to promote the UKIP cause. You can listen to a preview and purchase the song from itunes at https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/purple-nation-single/id678308413.
Do you think there is a YI member who has gone above and beyond the standard expectations of a UKIP member? Whether it's endless hours of leafleting, a phenomenal surge in branch/university society membership figures, or, just something that you feel is exceptional within the scope of UKIP work, Young Independence would like to hear from you. Please send in your entries along with your membership number and the reasons as to why you feel the individual deserves the award, and the council will then pick the best entry and the award will be given out at the YI Conference. Please send your e-mails to yi.secretary@ukip.orgwith 'YI Gold Medal' in the subject heading.
And finally...
An interesting article, from one of the applicants who did not make the shortlisted 'top 60' in England, was written by James Delingpole for the Spectator. For a slightly different take on the UKIP selection process, this article is well worth a read (even if you don't happen to agree with 100% of what is written): http://www.spectator.co.uk/columnists/james-delingpole/8994141/ukip-are-playing-it-safe-so-theyve-rejected-me/.
Best wishes,
The big news at present is of course the crisis in Syria, on which senior Party figures have been commenting over recent days. Internally, the current issues of note are the Party Conference (which is perhaps the most exciting in recent times), the NEC elections (those wishing to stand may now apply for a nomination pack from Head Office) and the MEP selection process.
UKIP statement on Syria
UKIP has issued the following statement on Syria: We have been in Afghanistan for longer than the first and second world wars put together and the benefits to the civilians of the country are marginally increased yet the price paid in money and blood by British troops is enormous. There is no clear proof it was the Assad regime who used chemical weapons. We have no idea who the rebels are - a point UKIP has been making since the start and we opposed the arming of the rebels who it has been indicated have extremist Islamic elements.
The MoD is already struggling with budget cuts and troops are being made redundant, many with very few opportunities of jobs on civvy street during this economic decline. It, quite simply, is not our business anyway. We are not world policemen. We saw a decade ago what happens with dodgy evidence being given to Parliament and we must not repeat the mistakes of Iraq.
The Party is holding a press conference on the issue this morning, and Nigel Farage has already been featured in an article for the Daily Express on the subject. Under the headline 'Nigel Farage echoes the people's view on Syria', the Express states "Not for the first time, it falls to UKIP leader Nigel Farage to speak up for the British public and against an out-of-touch political class."
Opinion polling shows that, although voters of all parties oppose military intervention in Syria, UKIP voters are the group most strongly opposed to British intervention. UKIP voters oppose missile strikes in Syria by a margin of 68% to 22%. By contrast, Conservative voters are the most supportive of such strikes: they oppose it by 'only' 45% to 35%.
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage's stance can be seen on a recent BBC News interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pxp61tYJcw.
Conference 2013: Celebrate 20 years of UKIP
A quick reminder about this year's Party Conference, for which tickets are selling fast. The atmosphere promises to be electric, especially considering the recent surge in UKIP membership. UKIP membership continues to rise (although the summer months are always somewhat slower), and currently stands at 30,500.
We are celebrating the Party's 20th anniversary and are hosting our biggest ever conference in London at the Central Hall, Westminster. The two-day conference takes place on September 20-21 and tickets are already available so make sure you book early. Tickets can be purchased online at http://www.ukip.org/conference20.
European elections candidate selection
You may have read in the news that a legal challenge was raised to UKIP's selection process for MEP candidates. An application for an injunction was heard yesterday, which failed. The judge explained that the process was not only fair but that it was designed to be fair, that the rules make it fair and that there was no evidence that the rules had been breached. This legal case did result in a short delay in printing ballot papers, but this is now going ahead and members should receive ballot papers shortly. The Party was awarded costs from the applicant.
NEC Elections
Any members wishing to stand for the National Executive Committee may now apply for a nomination form from Head Office on 01626 831290 or by email at mail@ukip.org. There are currently 4 vacancies on the NEC. The cost to stand is £100, which is non-returnable. Candidates require a proposer, seconder and eight assentors who are members of the Party in good standing. Close of nominations will be 19th September.
British taxes should not be shelling out for migrant welfare payments
It is utterly wrong that 407,000 non-UK nationals are receiving benefits. The fact that this has risen by more than 118,000 since 2008 is especially worrying and UKIP thinks that a fresh approach must be taken to tackle this soaring cost. Lets be clear: British taxpayers should not be paying for the benefits of those who chose to come here. We must take back control of our borders. Our open border policy as per our membership of the European Union has meant that almost 50,000 migrants from Eastern Europe are now claiming benefits in Britain. This must stop.
We welcome migrants, but only those who we need and who bring expertise to Britain. In a time of extraordinary economic hardship for our own citizens, taxpayers cannot subsidize the lives of those from other countries. UKIP is clear that extending open borders next year to Romania and Bulgaria is likely to only increase the burden on British citizens. We stand against this and urge the government to act.
Young Independence gold medal
Do you think there is a YI member who has gone above and beyond the standard expectations of a UKIP member? Whether it's endless hours of leafleting, a phenomenal surge in branch/university society membership figures, or, just something that you feel is exceptional within the scope of UKIP work, we want to hear from you.
Please send in your entries along with your membership number and the reasons as to why you feel the individual deserves the award, the YI council will then pick the best entry and the award will be given out at the YI Conference. Please send your e-mails to yi.secretary@ukip.orgwith 'YI Gold Medal' in the subject heading.
Best wishes,
As ever, the start of September has seen much internal Party activity. Monday's NEC meeting will be the subject of a full report in the next newsletter. The national Conference is coming up in London, and Young Independence are holding their first Conference just before it. Young Independence have come up with a 'bring a friend' initiative for discounted tickets to the YI Conference for non-members of the Party. On Thursday, an event billed as the 'biggest ever UKIP public meeting in the Midlands' will take place in Telford and feature an array of speakers including Nigel Farage MEP. On 15th September there will be another huge UKIP event, this time in Bradford as a Northern event.
Party Director Lisa Duffy has taken over the operation of the London office, and instituted professional working systems. The transformation in motivation and direction in the team of staff has been extraordinary in such a short period of time.
UKIP National Conference
The UKIP 2013 National Conference, to be held at the Central Hall in Westminster, promises to be the biggest that the Party has ever organised. Although most ticket sales have traditionally come in the last couple of weeks before Conference, Rob Burberry from the Conference Team reports that sales passed the all-important 500 figure some time ago. If previous years are anything to go by, this indicates that this will be UKIP's largest ever Conference by some margin.
It being our 20th year as a Party, there are a number of special events planned. We have commissioned a limited edition 20th anniversary ale, a 20th anniversary birthday cake (thanks to David Cameron, we are assured that this will be a fruit cake) as well as some special mystery guests. There will be a 20th anniversary magazine (over 50 pages) with specially-commissioned photographs and articles, and other commemorative merchandise.
As the Party has grown and become ever more successful we have had to adopt some security measures. To speed up your entry to the Conference venue, please bring your membership card. Bags may be subject to searches. Members are strongly advised to purchase tickets in advance.
The impressive array of speakers will include some of our newly-elected councillors, two MEPs from the EFD Group and a number of top UKIP luminaries headed of course by Nigel Farage MEP. The media interest in this year's Conference will be greater than ever before. To apply for Conference tickets online, the correct link is http://www.ukip.org/54-events/727-ukip-2013-conference-ticket-application.
Public meeting in the West Midlands
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP will take centre stage at the largest public meeting the party as ever held in the Midlands. Organised by local councillor Jill Seymour and featuring speakers including Paul Nuttall MEP, Christopher Gill and Bill Etheridge, it promises to be an event to kick start the election campaigns in the region.
2014 is a huge year for UKIP as the party seeks to win the European Elections and secure local councillors all over the country in the district and borough elections. The meeting is being held at The International Centre in Telford on Thursday, September 5, 2013 and doors open at 1845hrs. For more information or to book your place contact Cllr. Jill Seymour on jill_Seymour@btopenworld.com or 07778 792054.
Northern UKIP meeting and free gourmet buffet
Amjad Bashir and Mujeeb Bhutto are organising a public UKIP event at the Hilton Hotel in Bradford, BD1 5SH on the 15th September from 12 noon to 6pm. Amjad is the UKIP spokesman for small and medium businesses, and will be hosting the event which features a free gourmet buffet. The full list of speakers has not yet been finalised, but headline speakers will include UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP, Godfrey Bloom MEP, UKIP General Secretary Jonathan Arnott, Jane Collins (Yorkshire Regional Organiser) and Cllr. Louise Bours. Tickets should be booked in advance; to book your place please email amjad.bashir@ukip.org.
NEC elections
As you are already aware, the NEC elections are coming up and nomination forms are now available from Head Office on 01626 831290. One NEC member will be taking up a paid position with the Party. There will be more information on this subject at a later date, but paid employees of the Party cannot be on the NEC so there will be more vacancies than advertised in the issue of Independence News which is currently hitting doormats. More information to follow on this subject. At the NEC meeting on Monday, Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary) was appointed as the Returning Officer for the NEC elections.
Pressure on school places
Increasing pressure on Britain's schools fuelled by a migrant baby boom once again demonstrates the damaging and debilitating result of mass uncontrolled immigration. It is UKIP's view that controlled migration into the UK which is managed properly is a positive thing. However the Labour policy of mass open door EU migration which has sadly been continued by the present Coalition government has seen dire consequences for communities up and down the country.
Enormous pressure has been placed on local services such as schools who must now provide places for numbers which are increasing at a rapid rate due to the large scale influx of migrant families. Class sizes are now regularly surpassing 30, which is the recommended maximum class size. UKIP calls for a sensible immigration policy which allows skilled migrants to bring their expertise to our country. But as has been demonstrated by Britain's impending schools crisis, an open door policy is leading to chaos in our communities and placing a heavy burden on services.
Meanwhile, a news report in Poland earlier this year stating that around 1,000 schools are at risk of closure due to under subscription makes for interesting reading on the day that the LGA announce half of all primary schools in the UK are over-subscribed. The report from Polskie Radio says that around 1,000 Polish schools, the majority at Primary level, are being forced to close due to falling class numbers. Today the LGA reports that half of English primary schools, also around 1,000, will be oversubscribed by 2015. In an interview with the Rzeczpospolita daily newspaper, Antoni Jezowski from Poland's Institute of Educational Research (IBO) admits that the figures are accurate as a result of an ongoing demographic plunge.
UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall says the comparison is not 'an entirely direct correlation but absolutely must be taken as more than coincidence.' "We've been saying for years that the free movement of people simply cannot and will not work. There is never going to be an even number of people migrating between countries when there are stark economic and social differences. In the UK we have been on the receiving end for a large amount of EU migration, and immigration from further afield. The end result is that our kids are suffering in overcrowded classrooms, with the quality of teaching being obstructed by the vast spread of languages that the teacher has to be able to manage. I would not be so bold as to suggest this is an entirely direct correlation, but absolutely must be taken as more than coincidence. This isn't about who and where from, this is about basic numbers and EU free movement of people simply not working. But it's not just Britain suffering. Countries such as Poland need to retain and develop their future workforce if they are not going to become the wasteland of Europe. The end result will be everybody trying to cram themselves into a little island across the channel, without enough schools, housing and doctors to go around, while in the east, industries will struggle to find workers and whole conurbations will become like ghost towns.
"It is reported that the population of Poland will fall by around 10 million in the next 35 to 40 years, that's around a quarter of the population, while the UK population is continuing to rise at a level that is totally unsustainable. These stark findings regarding school closures in Poland and school overcrowding in the UK is the thin end of the wedge and a very clear indicator of what is to come unless we implement a sensible migration policy."
UKIP chain booklets now in stock
The 12-page A6 'chain booklet' has been a popular tool for branch activists across the country. Over 3 million have been produced and brought many new people in to the Party. Now, the content of the booklet has received a major update. Tim Aker, the Head of the Policy Unit, has worked with UKIP General Secretary Jonathan Arnott to produce an upgraded, updated version. These are now available from Head Office on 01626 831290. The cost is £50 (1,000) / £90 (2,000) / £130 (3,000).
Some branches have used these as publicity material to all houses in target wards. But the best use is for members of the public who've shown a little bit of extra interest in the Party. They do explain why Britain would leave the European Union, but provide a powerful answer for members of the public who ask questions such as 'I know what UKIP stand for on the EU, but what else do you believe in?' At a handy A6 size, members can easily keep a copy of this booklet with them so that they always have further information about UKIP available when asked questions by members of the public.
Young Independence Conference
Young Independence Chairman Rob Comley has sent the following message to Young Independence members about their forthcoming Conference: Although Young Independence is now the fastest growing political youth wing in the UK, with a potential rise in membership of around 200% in the last year, we want to make it even bigger! That's why we are offering, for the next seven days only, a second ticket to YI conference and ball, taking place on September 19th in London, for 50% of the original price if it is used by a non-member. To take advantage of this promotion simply use the promotional code bringafriend when purchasing your tickets at www.youngindependence.eventbrite.com, with the full conference schedule also available via the link!
There will be a lot of opportunities at this exciting event to meet party officials, including Nigel himself, vote in a YI council election, as well as be first in line to sign up for a proposed brand new YI Young Professionals group set to be launched during YI conference itself, and spending the night getting to know YI members both old and new at our fantastic summer ball. We also are still offering YI hostel places for only £36 for the whole weekend, for more information email yi.chairman@ukip.org.
This newsletter has already covered the 'big-name speakers' including Nigel Farage and Paul Nuttall who will be addressing the YI Conference. Therefore, it seems appropriate to mention some of the up-and-coming stars of the Party who will be speaking as well. John Tennant will be offering all the latest news (and apparently gossip) from Brussels, whilst councillor Robin Hunter-Clarke will be speaking on his experiences as a young councillor and Michael Heaver of course on social media. Current YI Chairman Rob Comley will of course be speaking. Harry Aldridge, former YI Chairman, has been around the Party a long time and his experience will be invaluable.
Best wishes,
My apologies that it's been a little longer than usual since the last forum newsletter, so today's is a little longer than usual.
There were a number of Council by-elections on Thursday, in somewhat tougher wards for the Party than have been up recently. The best result was in Barnsley, where UKIP's James Johnson took 23.2% of the vote. In a tough ward in Manchester (Ancoats and Clayton) UKIP took 9.4% - but perhaps surprisingly, this was a second place finish out of seven candidates in an ultra-safe Labour ward. The by-election in Selby South saw UKIP take 17.6% and third place, whilst in Salford UKIP finished on 18.5% - claiming second place to Labour. In South Staffordshire, UKIP took almost exactly 20% of the vote in the Brewood and Coven ward. Finally in England, the Parbold ward in West Lancashire was a 9.4% share – a result which would undoubtedly have been much higher but for it being marginal between the Conservatives and Labour, squeezing the UKIP vote. In most (but not all) of these wards, UKIP had not stood last time, so results represent a good start for the Party. There were two Council by-elections in Scotland, where UKIP took 2.4% (Glasgow Govan) and 1.6% (Scottish Borders, Tweeddale).
Dunfermline by-election
A Scottish Parliamentary by-election is currently taking place in Dunfermline. Leafleting and canvassing are going on every day from now until the 24th October (polling day) when we will be manning polling stations. All help is appreciated, no booking necessary just turn up at the UKIP office 31 Chapel Street Dunfermline KY12 7AW open 9 to 5 every day. For more information please call Daryll Pitcher on 07511 045 145.
Cut energy bills by 10%
UKIP Energy spokesman Roger Helmer MEP has attacked both Labour and the Conservatives for hypocrisy over energy prices. He said that here is a way to make energy more affordable without scapegoating the energy companies, but to do so would be to admit an historic mistake.
Helmer said, "It isn't that complicated, if we remove the green subsidies and charges we can cut bills by 10%. Ed Miliband brought in the Climate change bill which itself ramped up prices, which he admitted they would do at the time. But he would never suffer personally unlike the millions now in deliberately created fuel poverty. What is more he has just appointed SEE Energy's Director for National Development to his Ministerial team, former MEP Eluned Morgan."
"It ill behoves Labour and the Greg Barker the Energy Minister to attack fuel companies when they are responsible for this parlous situation. Stop blaming the companies take responsibility for your own legislative mistakes and row back from the mess you have created. They need to recognize the folly of environmental policies that only deliver increased costs, but fail to deliver anything significant in any fight against Climate Change".
MEP Selection – ballot results (England and Wales)
The results of the MEP selection process for England and Wales have been announced. The lists have remained unchanged by the NEC, which upheld the results of the members' ballot. Remember that your 1st preference was worth 10 votes, the 2nd worth 9, and so on. This explains why Nigel Farage and Paul Nuttall were able to get more votes than there are Party members. The vote totals for Wales are much smaller for two reasons: firstly, the Welsh ballot was separate and so fewer people were eligible to vote. Secondly, in Wales a 1st preference was worth only 4 votes. The two should not be compared with each other. I reproduce the lists and vote totals below. One candidate in Yorkshire has no votes; this candidate was originally on the reserve list but now moves on to the candidates' list due to the withdrawal of another candidate. Results from Scotland are not yet announced as there is a potential for withdrawals from the list. There being only one candidate in Northern Ireland (and only one is needed under the different voting system, STV, used in Northern Ireland elections), Cllr. Henry Reilly becomes the candidate 'unopposed' in Northern Ireland.
Eastern Region
1 Patrick O'Flynn - 22610
2 Stuart Agnew - 21441
3 Tim Aker - 6841
4 Michael Heaver - 6054
5 Andrew Smith - 3475
6 Mick McGough - 2517
7 Andy Monk - 2374
East Midlands Region
1 Roger Helmer - 19590
2 Margot Parker - 9340
3 Jonathan Bullock - 3245
4 Nigel Wickens - 2242
5 Barry Mahoney - 2229
London Region
1 Gerard Batten - 26093
2 Paul Oakley - 8627
3 Elizabeth Jones - 4667
4 Lawrence Webb - 4275
5 Alastair McFarlane - 2869
6 Andrew McNeilis - 2736
7 Anthony Brown - 1750
8 Peter Whittle - 1278
North East Region
1 Jonathan Arnott – 9683
2 Richard Elvin – 4025
3 John Tennant – 2530
North West Region
1 Paul Nuttall - 53313
2 Louise Bours - 6981
3 Steven Woolfe - 6372
4 Shneur Odze - 5247
5 Michael McManus - 4909
6 Lee Slaughter - 2322
7 Simon Noble - 2099
8 Peter Harper - 1587
South East Region
1 Nigel Farage - 89909
2 Janice Atkinson - 23304
3 Diane James - 18131
4 Ray Finch - 13344
5 Donna Edmunds - 5475
6 Patricia Culligan - 5192
7 Nigel Jones - 4225
8 Alan Stevens - 2491
9 Simon Strutt - 2463
10 Barry Cooper – 1982
South West Region
1 William Dartmouth - 16796
2 Julia Reid - 11155
3 Gawain Towler - 6174
4 Tony McIntyre - 4391
5 Robert Smith - 4366
6 Keith Crawford – 2856
West Midlands Region
1 Jill Seymour - 10483
2 James Carver - 4763
3 Bill Etheridge - 4423
4 Phil Henrick - 3080
5 Michael Wrench - 2818
6 Michael Green - 1849
7 Lyndon Jones – 1717
Yorkshire & North Lincolnshire Region
1 Jane Collins - 10264
2 Amjad Bashir - 8349
3 Mike Hookem - 3136
4 Gary Shores - 2500
5 Jason Smith - 2058
6 Anne Murgatroyd
Wales
1 Nathan Gill - 1254
2 James Cole - 697
3 Caroline Jones - 668
4 David Rowlands – 639
Diane James on Question Time this week
I am informed that UKIP's Diane James will be on the BBC's Question Time programme from Basingstoke on Thursday (17th October) – don't forget to tune in!
Paul Nuttall MEP - article on Ralph Miliband
UKIP Deputy Leader Paul Nuttall MEP wrote the following article for the midweek Sport, which I reproduce below in full because of the particular interest in this story:
As a historian, I am familiar with the works of Ed Miliband's father, Ralph. Yes, he was a Marxist, and yes, he had some very odd left wing views. However, I don't think the fact that Ralph Miliband was a Communist is any reason to attack his son. After all, we can't choose our parents.
But I'm also bored by this mock outrage from the left wing press. They claim it's out of order to criticise the dead, but let's not forget that these SAME people rejoiced at the death of Margaret Thatcher. I feel uncomfortable with the attacks on Ralph Miliband, just as I did those on Margaret Thatcher when she passed away. However, the real story to come out of this sorry saga is that the BBC has again shown its true colours – and it's RED to the core.
Last week, the BBC became the mouthpiece of Ed Miliband (right) and the Labour Party. Labour figures such as Ed Miliband, Ken Livingstone, Tony Benn and Lord Glassman were pimped around BBC studios and given easy interviews on the subject. Over thirty articles related to the story appeared on the BBC website and it was given 49 minutes' coverage on the BBC's flagship current affairs programme on Radio 4, The Today Programme. For the BBC, it was as if the world had stopped because Ed Miliband's father had been attacked in a newspaper!
Peter Sissons, the former BBC newsreader, summed up why when he said "the overwhelming view of BBC news executives is broadly sympathetic to the Labour Party" – so it's no surprise really. Tory MPs are concerned and have written to the corporation to ask what's going on, but they shouldn't bother because the BBC has a long history of left wing bias.
Former UKIP leader Lord Pearson complained that the BBC's coverage on the EU was biased as far back as 2002. We now know BBC executives passed him off as being "quite mad" at the time. In 2005, the Wilson Report into BBC coverage concluded that it was "culturally biased" in favour of left wing causes. As a result, organisation promised to change. Sadly, it did not.
In July this year, the former Head of BBC News admitted that the organisation did not represent the public's views on immigration fairly because of a "deep liberal bias". In August this year, a study by the Centre for Policy Studies found that the BBC was more likely to promote left wing stories and be hostile to those from the right. On the issue of alleged "man-made global warming", the BBC has been the cheerleader-in-chief. It very rarely gives a platform to climate change sceptics and allows scaremongerers to go unchallenged. It's even worse when spoon-feeding global warming stories to our youngsters through shows like Blue Peter.
I don't mind the fact that newspapers and private media outlets have political bias. If you don't like the political leanings of a newspaper or a TV channel, don't pay for them. But it's different when the state broadcaster is politically biased, because we all have to pay the licence fee no matter what. I'm coming to the conclusion that the licence fee should be scrapped and then we can choose whether we want to pay to have the BBC's left wing propaganda shoved down our throats or not.
And finally...
Former Secretary of Young Independence Jack Duffin has announced his intention to stand for the presidency of the National Union of Students. Speaking about his campaign, Jack said "A serious achievement would be to get individuals in student politics and the three old parties speaking common sense when it comes to the education of millions of kids in this country. For too long it has just been acceptable for them to rattle off the rhetoric about trying hard but never delivering."
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
Yesterday saw the count for the Party's elections to the National Executive Committee. Given the increase in Party membership, there was some concern as to whether the count might spill over into a second day. However, the team of volunteers worked extremely hard and a more efficient system for counting meant that we were able to get through the process much quicker. As Returning Officer I'd like to thank everyone who volunteered to help with the election count and all the candidates for fighting the campaign in such a good spirit. This year has seen very few complaints indeed, and no complaints at all about any of the elected candidates. The count needed to be conducted efficiently, and Chris Cassidy in Head Office in particular was most helpful with the design of counting sheets and spreadsheets for compiling results. The full results can be found below.
NEC election results
Seven candidates were elected to the NEC; four for a full 3-year term and three to fill the vacancies created by those who did not complete their terms. The elected candidates are shown in bold:
Lucy Bostick - 4205
Andrew Moncreiff - 3394
Adrianne Smyth - 3387
Rob McWhirter - 3137
George Curtis - 3133
Tom Bursnall - 2846
Harry Aldridge - 2805
Robin Hunter-Clarke - 2801
Sebastian Fairweather - 2594
Russell Hicks - 2447
David Coburn - 2409
Andrew Reid - 2379
Jonathan Stanley - 1826
Colin Stewart - 1745
Richard Lee - 1716
Lee Waters - 1691
Colin Nicholson - 1688
Mick Greenhough - 1599
Charles Dodman - 1568
Andrew Fairfoull - 1534
Rhys Burriss - 1406
Gary Robinson - 1382
George Konstantinidis - 1323
Noel Matthews - 1016
UKIP to win Thanet South in 2015?
UKIP NEC member Alan Bown has funded a constituency opinion poll with Survation of voters in the Thanet South constituency. The sitting Conservative MP has signalled her intention to step down, in a seat which has traditionally been rather close between Conservatives and Labour. The results of the Survation poll were interesting: 35% Labour, 30% UKIP and 28% Conservatives. This suggests that UKIP – rather than the Conservatives – might be the best chance of stopping a Labour win in Thanet South. On the basis of these numbers, UKIP has a strong chance of winning the seat with a good campaign.
We frequently hear Conservatives complain of 'UKIP splitting the Conservative vote', as though somehow they have a right to expect UKIP voters to come across to them. But 78% of UKIP voters said they wouldn't vote Conservative even if there were no UKIP candidate, indicating what we have known for a long time: UKIP take votes from right across the political spectrum, not just from the Conservatives.
Council Election results
Yesterday saw another mixed bag of Council by-election results for UKIP. Whilst we didn't gain any seats, the best result of the night came in Wakefield (Horbury and South Ossett) where the UKIP vote shot up to 32.8%. The result was Labour 1041, UKIP 856, Conservatives 504, Liberal Democrats 212. Congratulations to Graham Jesty on a good result, even if he was not quite able to win the seat. I believe there will be an election again in this seat on the same day as the European elections – one looking like a potential UKIP gain on that day!
In the Winkfield & Cranbourne ward on Bracknell Forest Council, we finished in second place to the Conservatives – with candidate Ken La Garde gaining 28.7% of the vote. The result was Conservatives 582, UKIP 318, Labour 139, Liberal Democrats 69. Other results on the night saw Steven Wildman take 17.9% in Central Bedfordshire, Elizabeth Jones 3.9% in Lambeth and Laurence Allen 24% in St. Helens. The St. Helens ward was one of very few recently to be contested by the BNP (with the party taking just 4% of the vote).
And finally...
Despite the methodology working against UKIP, YouGov's latest daily tracker today shows us on 14% nationally for the next General Election. Opinion polls make little sense unless you compare polls with others from the same company, using the same assumptions. Over the last month, YouGov are showing UKIP clearly on the up.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
It has been an incredible campaign in the Wythenshawe and Sale East by-election. UKIP has been attacked, quite viciously, by the Labour Party right from the start but still made progress during the campaign. With the results having just been declared, congratulations must go to John Bickley –an excellent candidate. This was always going to be a difficult constituency to win, in part because of a short campaign with lots of postal votes – leaving a very short period of time to contact people before they had voted.
Nevertheless, we ran a strong campaign. Just a couple of years ago, a second-place finish at a Parliamentary by-election would have been unthinkable. Today, it was expected by our activists and the media alike. Anything less would have been seen in the media as a failure. This shows just how far we have already come as a Party.
Once again, the Ashcroft poll understated UKIP – although not by as much as in Rotherham and Eastleigh. Whilst Ashcroft had UKIP on 15%, we finished up higher than that on 18% when the votes were counted. UKIP has gone from 5th place to 2nd place in this seat in a short period of time. Whether this continuing understatement of UKIP is a result of Ashcroft's methodology or a late swing to UKIP is a debatable point.
Congratulations must go to all those who worked so hard for this result, and thanks to everyone who donated or gave up their time to campaign in this by-election.
Wythenshawe & Sale East result
Labour - 13268
UKIP (John Bickley) – 4301 (17.8%)
Conservatives – 3479
Liberal Democrats – 1176
Greens – 748
BNP – 708
Official Monster Raving Loony Party – 288
Janice Atkinson on Question Time
UKIP's Janice Atkinson was on Question Time tonight. My apologies that I did not circulate this in advance; a different UKIP representative had originally been booked and cancelled; I did not realise until too late that Janice would be appearing. At the time of writing the programme is not yet available on BBC iplayer, but by the time you read this it may be online here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03vlcxy.
EU putting wildlife before people
South West UKIP MEP William Dartmouth has condemned the EU's skewed priorities, exposing the damaging consequences of EU directives on flooding:
"On Monday this week European Commissioner Viviane Reding came to the UK to joyously declare that 70% of UK laws originate from the EU. Ms Reding's visit took place at the same time as the consequences of heavy rainfall compounded by the effect of EU regulations, have brought about widespread flooding, suffering and the destruction of property. The evidence is that EU directives put wildlife before people. It is starting to be clear that DEFRA and the Environment Agency have been zealous in implementing EU directives.
"The new direction was started in 2004 by the European Commission document on 'flood risk management'. This bore bitter fruit in the 2007 EU Directive on Flood Risks. This has been further compounded by the EU's Water Framework Directive, the Habitats Directive, the Environmental Impact Assessment and the Strategic Environmental Assessment Directive. This have been followed the letter by the UK's Environment Agency, and the downside of this is that dredging has been greatly reduced because of the tight restrictions of silt removal and the protection of species such as the Depressed River Mussel.
"In this new EU-induced dispensation, ordinary people are left sandbagged in their own homes because of flooding are the ones who are depressed and not the mussels. The front page of the Environment Agency's website says, 'Floods destroy, be prepared.' It is clear the UK has not been prepared, and this is disgraceful."
Council results round-up
Last week saw three Council by-elections, where UKIP took 18% (Robert Sheridan, Arbourthorne ward on Sheffield City Council), 21.8% (Laurie Gray, St. Johns ward on Tendring District Council) and 21.5% (Sue Shearing, Peter Bruff ward on Tendring Council). This week, there were two elections. Kingstanding ward has declared (oddly, a Conservative gain in a Labour ward on Birmingham City Council) and UKIP took 7.9% of the vote. At the time of writing, the other Council seat (in Richmondshire) to count tonight has still not been declared.
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
The big news this week is the ComRes opinion poll which has shown UKIP in first place in an opinion poll for this year's European elections. The poll, which put UKIP on 30% ahead of Labour's 28%, Conservatives 21%, Liberal Democrats 8% and Greens 6% would – if repeated at the actual election - see UKIP take 24 seats. The North West region would be particular beneficiaries, with UKIP set to jump from one seat to three.
At every previous European election, UKIP has gained popularity during the course of the campaign. Could this happen again, even starting from a base as high as 30%? Winning the European elections would be an incredible boost to the Party going in to next year's General Elections. The Party, according to the new chair of UKIP's Councillors' Association, is also on track to gain 'hundreds' of Council seats on May 22nd. These are exciting times for UKIP.
Report on March NEC meeting
Present: Nigel Farage MEP (NF) (from 3.20pm), Steve Crowther, Party Chairman (SC), Rob McWhirter (RM), Tom Bursnall (TB), Adrianne Smyth (AS), Mick McGough (MM), Harry Aldridge (HA), George Curtis (GC), Andrew Moncreiff (AM), Piers Wauchope (PW), Louise Bours (LB). Also present: Neil Hamilton, Deputy Chairman (NH), Matthew Richardson, Party Secretary (MR), Pete Reeve, National Nominating Officer (PR), Jonathan Arnott, General Secretary (JA) (minutes), Stuart Wheeler (Party Treasurer) (from 3pm).
The meeting started at 1.10pm. Apologies for absence were received from Paul Nuttall, Alan Bown and Steven Woolfe. The minutes of the previous meeting were approved subject to minor amendments.
PR reported that we have had the Councillors Association meeting and they have elected officers as follows: Cllr. David Sprason (Chairman), Cllr. Hilton (Vice Chairman), Cllr. David Meacock (Secretary) and Cllr. Paul Bullen (Treasurer).
We have now re-registered the Party name and taken the gaps out of UK I P. One description (Say NO to HS2) failed to one already registered and we are trying 'Scrap HS2'. The others have gone through.
Spring Conference was a success, with more than 1,000 members attending on Friday and a full house again on Saturday for the public meeting, of which about one-third were non-members. There was no catastrophic negative publicity. The Sunday Mirror came in with undercover people and went away with a page of absolute drivel.
The regional campaigns are gathering momentum. The official UKIP Scotland team held a successful launch on 23rd February with around 40 members, gaining coverage from the main Scottish papers. The NEC confirmed the Scottish MEP candidate list consisting of David Coburn (1), Kevin Newton (2), Otto Inglis (3), Denise Baykal (4), Hugh Hatrick (5) and Malcolm Mackay (6).
The Party is taking over the lease of Lexdrum House until September. We now have the full run of the offices and a considerable amount of extra space. Lucy Bostick has resigned from the NEC; the meeting passed a resolution to allow the next Robin Hunter-Clarke to join the NEC as of the April meeting.
The NEC approved the formation of branches in Upper Bann and Bury, and the splitting of NE Cambridgeshire from NW Cambridgeshire, Clacton from Harwich and North Essex, Welwyn Hatfield from Hertsmere, Torbay from Totnes and Weston-Super-Mare from North Somerset.
The financial situation has improved, but it is not possible to accurately predict the level of donations that will come in during the campaign. This means that the Party will have to estimate the appropriate amount to commit on the items which have to be signed off early (for example, billboards and leaflets).
The NEC discussed the mechanics of Britain's future withdrawal from the European Union, and passed a motion as follows: That UKIP would seek to leave the European Union through Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. However, should the European Union not negotiate in good faith and no deal be reached, we would reserve the right to take the route of repeal of the 1972 European Communities Act.
SC submitted an amended version of the MEP Charter, detailing what will be expected of UKIP MEPs in the next Parliament. In the Wythenshawe by-election we were fortunate to choose our candidate a week before other parties. Some voters had still not even heard of us. John Bickley was an excellent candidate. He destroyed other candidates in debate. Alan Bown will be covering activists' accommodation costs of almost £10,000.
Labour were nasty, and the BNP were abusive. It was the most vicious campaign so far. The minibus was egged, but we averaged 35 people a day despite atrocious weather. The newspapers happily printed information they knew to be factually wrong, and we launched the Manchester Manifesto. A number of senior people in the Party including GB came up. We went up by 14.5% in a very short campaign. Even the police weren't helping us on the night of the election; we had to walk through the protestors. We used a professional call centre.
RM reported that we sent 22,700 emails out during Wythenshawe with 18% read rate and 3% click-through. NH commented that all parties apart from UKIP went down during the campaign. The Local and European elections manifestos were approved, and will become available to members in the coming weeks.
The Young Independence election results were as follows:
Edward Sumners approved as Grassroots Officer (79-9)
Joe Jenkins approved as Universities Officer (82-6)
Hannah Connell approved as Events Officer (85-5)
Dan Jukes approved as Elections Officer (86-3)
Finlay Young approved as International Officer (68-19)
Laura Howard approved as Secretary (85-3)
Richard Harrington approved as Treasurer (83-2)
Communications Officer
Ben Walker – 46
Oliver Corbishley - 37
Vice Chairman
Thomas Hoof - 47
Robin Hunter-Clarke 38
Chairman
Jack Duffin - 57
Christopher Wood - 29
The NEC ratified the results of the YI elections, and appointed Harry Aldridge as the NEC's liaison with Young Independence.
The meeting closed at 6.14pm.
Tickets for Nigel Farage public meetings
UKIP Leader Nigel Farage MEP will be doing a tour of the country in late April and early May, doing public meetings at a wide variety of venues. This tour has already received substantial publicity, in particular for the meeting at Sage Gateshead which has generated real controversy as the Party's opponents have attacked us. Having booked the 1,700-seater venue on April 23rd, UKIP came under fire from various far-left activists – prompting Billy Bragg of all people to defend our right to hold a meeting.
The tour begins on 22nd April in Sheffield, with dates through to Friday 2nd May in St. Ives. Full details of most of the meetings can be found at http://ukip.ticketsource.co.uk/. The meeting at Sage Gateshead is ticketed separately and has a dedicated website http://www.nigelatsagegateshead.org.
UKIP to win 'hundreds of Council seats' in May
In his first statement as the newly elected Leader of the UK Independence Party's Councillors Association (UKIPCA), the organisation responsible for supporting the Party's growing number of councillors across the country, Cllr David Sprason has suggested that UKIP is well placed to: "produce an earthquake in local government in May, when we fully expect to win hundreds of seats across the country."
Speaking after being elected as the new Chairman of UKIPCA, Cllr Sprason, the former deputy leader of Leicestershire County Council and currently the leader of the UKIP group on the council said: "It is my aim to ensure that UKIP is not just relevant in combating the EU but also has a key role in fighting bureaucracy, waste, corruption and the overbearing egos of politicians in county and town halls across the country. UKIP's no whip policy means that our councillors are well placed to ensure that the voices of ordinary members of the community are heard and respected in a way that the traditional political parties have conspicuously failed to do, over many years. "
Cllr Sprason's comments follow an incredibly successful county council election in May 2013, when UKIP received a quarter of all of the votes cast across the country, winning 147 county council seats and achieving over 800 second places.
Cllr Peter Reeve, UKIP's local government spokesman, welcomed the election of Cllr Sprason: "I am very pleased that David has been elected to such a senior role in our Party. His re-election in May 2013, as a UKIP Councillor, renews his mandate with his local community and he can now bring the wealth of experience that he has of leading local government, to take UKIP on to even greater achievements in the future."
North East fundraising meal
A fundraising evening and buffet (£20/ticket) will be held at the Park Hotel, Tynemouth on 28th March from 7pm to 11.30pm. Speakers will include Party Director and former UKIP Mayor of Ramsey Lisa Duffy, Local government co-ordinator Cllr. Pete Reeve, Small Business Spokesman Amjad Bashir and UKIP General Secretary Jonathan Arnott. The evening will support the North East European elections campaign. Tickets can be booked from the UKIP North East website at http://www.ukipne.org/.
UKIP Leicester event
On Sunday 6th April 2014, UKIP City of Leicester present MEP Candidates Amjad Bashir & Margot Parker, speaking on the issues of Immigration and Small Business and taking questions afterwards. The event will be held at Mansah Restaurant, Dysart Way, Leicester LE1 2JY April 6th. Drinks are at 1600 hrs onward with a superb Indian buffet meal from 1700 hrs on. Speeches and Q&A 1815. Advance/early bird tickets are priced at £10 and include the meal. On the door, on the night, the tickets will be £15. The Event Director is Ismail Patel who can be contacted by email at ismail.ukip@diplomats.com.
Study: can you help?
Chris Cassidy at Head Office has asked me to circulate a study which is being undertaken by a university student about members of political parties for part of a dissertation. If you have 30 seconds to spare to answer, please fill in the UKIP survey: http://freeonlinesurveys.com/s.asp?sid=af80b0uj22yfvfu438259. A survey for UKIP councillors is at http://freeonlinesurveys.com/s.asp?sid=z5qlhrqdz3ljf16438208.
Death of a UKIP stalwart
UKIP Bedfordshire stalwart Brian Vissian has sadly passed away. Responding to the news Eastern Counties Chairman George Konstantinidis said: "I am afraid there is bad news regarding Brian, and even though I was prepared and not surprised, the sad news came to me as a shock. Today, I have been notified that Brian Vissian passed away at the age of 77. Brian, for all those who knew him, was a true Patriot of rare kind. He was a UKIPer in every sense.
He got up every morning with UKIP and went to bed every night with UKIP in his mind. With his little money he used to buy UKIP accessories and often designed stickers, mugs, car magnets etc and always paid a donation to the branch. At any opportunity, he would write a poem and I will never forget the times he called me with excitement to read me his latest poem. Brian has served his branch as a committee member for the last 3 years and resigned recently due to his poor health. He never refused help and he drove for hours to attend most by-elections. Nothing was too much for Brian and whatever his financial circumstances, he never hesitated to volunteer any day, any time with any weather.
At the last Party conference, he received an award for his extraordinary services to the Party which was presented to him on his birthday by Lisa Duffy and that was the highlight of his UKIP life. Regardless of his poor health, he continued to drive around towns with his UKIP and British flags and he made sure that UKIP was noticed at every branch meeting. He was last seen just a few weeks ago on Saturday 8th March driving around Ampthill town during the branch's Action Day.
The loss of Brian will be irreplaceable for us in Bedfordshire. Brian was someone who dedicated his life to fighting the EU. He felt betrayed by the current government and he believed that UKIP would force a referendum, so we could get our Country back. Brian will be sadly missed but his example will continue to inspire many of us. On 25th May, the day of the European election results please remember to drink to Brian. He would have loved to be there with us at the biggest victory in the history of the Party. The branch will pay a tribute to Brian at the next meeting on Saturday 22nd March. He will never be erased from our memory."
Best wishes,
Jonathan Arnott (UKIP General Secretary)
PRESS RELEASE
(Issued by: Dave Pascoe, Press Officer, NE Region, UKIP)
U.K.I. P. HARTLEPOOL ANNOUNCE ADOPTION OF PROSPECTIVE PARLIAMENTARY CANDIDATE FOR 2015 GENERAL ELECTION
On Tuesday 15th April there was a 'hustings' event held at The Hourglass, PH in Hartlepool at which Phillip Broughton was officially adopted to be the UKIP PPC at the General Election of 2015.
In full compliance with the rules and regulations of both the Electoral Commission, and UKIP's procedures, Phillip duly received the votes of a minimum of two thirds of members present to duly endorse his candidacy.
CONTACT / PERSONAL DETAILS FOR PHILLIP BROUGHTON
NAME: PHILLIP BROUGHTON
AGE: 30
ADDRESS:
85, LONGLEAT WALK,
INGLEBY BARWICK,
STOCKTON-ON-TEES,
CLEVELAND,
TS17 5DZ
TELEPHONE: 07733 153293
E-Mail: phillipthegiantkiller@hotmail.com
PHILLIP BROUGHTON CV
• WORK: TESCO CHECKOUT/CUSTOMER TEAM LEADER AND ALSO CO-RUNS A WRESTLING PROMOTION ENTERPRISE
• POLITICAL EXPEERIENCE: HAS PARTICIPATED AS A CONSERVATIVECANDIDATE IN 3 LOCAL ELECTION CAMPAIGNS IN STOCKTON – 2005, 2007 AND 2011
• POLITICAL ACHIEVEMENT: STOCKTON BOROUGH COUNCILLOR (CONSERVATIVE) 2007- 2011, WORKED ON PLANNING AND CYP COMMITTEES'
In Phillip's presentation at the hustings he listed the following areas as his national political priorities which he will strongly promote during the campaign.....
• Increase in Defence spending
• Cut Foreign Aid
• End uncontrolled immigration as currently exists due to our membership of the EU
• Bring about tougher policies on Law and Order
• A referendum on our EU membership to be held immediately
• Smaller government bringing about real reductions in government debt
• Lower taxes to help small and medium sized businesses
• Strongly oppose 'green' taxes, useless and costly wind turbines, and promote the greater use of nuclear energy
• Tackle the welfare culture and stress that we need policies that always guarantees that it pays to work
Phillip has declared that he will adopt the following campaign strategy..................
• Establish regular UKIP newsletters, covering local and national issues, for circulation in the constituency
• Establish a dedicated website / blog
• Establish a dedicated 'Facebook' page
• Establish 'YouTube stream to allow video contact with the electorate
• Extensive Public meetings during the campaign
• High Profile contact with the electorate which guarantees – extensive canvassing, use of highly prominent street stalls to promote our message, and, the use of 'action days' in every part of the constituency
In May 2015 Hartlepool has a real opportunity to make a real difference to the decades of stagnant, wasteful and just plain unrepresentative government that Hartlepool has endured for far too long. By electing a UKIP MP, the people of Hartlepool have the opportunity of saying 'NO' to the tired old political establishment that has heaped so much misery, treachery and low esteem upon our town and the country in general.
May 2015 could be a real 'turning point' in North East politics – MAKE IT HAPPEN.
THE FUTURE IS COMMON SENSE – THE FUTURE IS UKIP.
For any further information on this PR and for ongoing campaign information and updates please contact:
Dave Pascoe,
Press Officer,
NE Region UKIP
Address:
64, Dunbar Road,
Hartlepool,
TS25 5DX
TEL: 01429 223754
E-Mail: d.j.pascoe@virginmedia.com