UKIP

[admin]

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.

[admin]

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)

[admin]

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)

[admin]

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)

[admin]

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.

[admin]

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)

[admin]

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)

[admin]

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)

[admin]

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)

[admin]

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)

[admin]

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)

[admin]

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....

[admin]

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

[admin]

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.

[admin]

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,