UKIP Barn Dance

Derek Bennett, UKIP's regional organiser for the West Midlands, has sent out the following:

The Newcastle-under-Lyme UKIP Branch members are organising a BARN DANCE for Saturday, 11th October, 2008. Tickets cost £8 per person, a meal of either meat and potato pie or a chicken wrap is included in the price of the ticket.

The barn dance starts at 7.30 pm and is to be held at the Red Street Community Centre Nr junction 16 of the M6.

Tickets can be purchased from Derek Huckfield, telephone: 01782 628740. He will be pleased to give you further details and directions.

Enjoy a fun night with UKIP, last year's barn dance was a great success enjoyed by all.

Regards, Derek Bennett.

Bruges Group - Where were the other two?

The room was so full for the event there was standing room only - but there was no sign of Dan Hannan and Roger Helmer.Hannan and Helmer were supposed to be sharing a platform with the UKIP leader Nigel Farage at the Bruges Group debate yesterday at the Tory conference, However, due to 'heavy pressure' explained Barry Legg, the two Tory MEPs were not in a position to attend .Hannan and Helmer were threatened with de-selection should they speak on the same platform as Nigel Farage.

As Trixy hears it, both MEPs, who sit with the non attached in the European Parliament because they did not tow the line of the Europhile group they sit with, received letters from Conservative Party HQ instructed By David Cameron not to be at the meeting or speak on the subject.They were told that they were not allowed to share a platform with Nigel Farage ever.

What has Cameron got to fear from two of his most EU-sceptical MEPs telling the truth about the EU as they have done so eloquently at many meetings over the years?

The UKIP leader said: "Last year even the LibDems were prepared to debate with me. This year we just see the Tories being, in the words of Margaret Thatcher, 'frit'."

Mr Farage went on: "The Tories are frightened of debate, frightened of the EU and this proves they are frightened of the UK Independence Party.

"The fact that the two most prominent Eurosceptics in the party have been muzzled in this way just goes to show that come next year's European Parliament elections there is only one show in town and that is UKIP

.The 500 Tory activists present were not happy bunnies but warmly listened to what Nigel had to say and most commented at the end of the meeting that they would be voting UKIP in the European Elections! Update - The socialist Tory hierarchy are happy to share a platform with Cherie Blair and Hazel Blears.

Troublemakers need a better disguise

Is anyone else out there getting emails from troublemakers purporting to be UKIP supporters?  I'm sure I can't be the only one.

For me, they started with Andrew Edwards (aka Richard English), the BNP supporter outed by the party some time ago.  Rather than being embarassed at his public outing and keeping himself to himself, he still sends unsolicited emails espousing the BNP and criticising UKIP to a long list of people both in the party and in the media claiming to be a disgrunteld UKIP supporter.  Nothing he ever writes appears in newspapers but he still plugs away doing his bit for Nick Griffin and his jackbooted colleagues.

After Andrew Edwards' emails stopped coming, emails from "UKIP Truth" mysteriously started appearing instead.  Sent from a relatively anonymous Google mail account (Richard English was confirmed to be an alter ego of Andrew Edwards by some simple forensic work on his emails) UKIP Truth claims to be:

a collective of members who believe that the cause of UKIP is a noble and honest one, but are becoming increasingly disillusioned with corruption and lack of effective strategy coming from the leadership

Quite.  And the best way to support the party you are a member of is to send unsolicited, anonymous emails to members with exclusively negative comments and made up "sleaze".

Take the latest one, for example:

It would seem in preparation for the European Elections next year Nigel has appointed a press officer who lives in Europe, Portugal to be precise.

[...]

Timmy Tax-Exile (henceforth known as TEX) will not be spending his time schmoozing with the British Press as this might impact upon his tax status, but instead will be concentrating on his "Blog" which he can happily do from his villa on the Algarve.

Meanwhile, on the British Democracy Forum earlier this month, "Timmy Tax Exile" had this to say:

I am currently in Portugal. I shall be in London full time from 2 weeks hence. There's not a great deal of point in being in London when Parliament isn't sitting and all the political journalists are spread around the country at the various party conferences. I would still be (am in fact) a long distance phone call away from them all.

Portugal isn't exactly a tax haven so I'm not sure the tax exile label is quite deserved, especially bearing in mind that he'd be paying tax on the money he earns here in England.  Regardless of that, there's nothing wrong with living abroad, enjoying the sunshine, the more relaxed pace of life and lower taxes.  Sounds more like jealousy to me - I know I am!

The more UKIP challenges the eurofederalist establishment, the more people like this will crawl out of the woodwork to make co-ordinated attacks on the party.  "Tax Exile Timmy" smacks of left wing jealousy and clearly isn't even true.

The best thing to do with these troublemakers is tell them what you think of them and then sit back and ignore the inevitable ranting you will get in return.

UKIP's Gerald Battern on the Pan-European Police State

Denis MacShane: Fruit Loop

Chris Patten, the arch eurofederalist Tory, has written a book.  And a ridiculous piece of dirge it looks too.

The Labour MP for Rotherham, Denis MacShane, has used his review of the book in the Independent to launch a bizarre attack on the Tories:

Patten was the last Governor of Hong Kong and is almost the last pro-European in the Tory Party. He has warm words for the EU but does not examine the visceral anti-Europeanism of his party and its leader. In Berlin recently, David Cameron promised a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty were he to become prime minister and the Treaty were not to be ratified. That would mean that the first period of any Tory government unleashing, as its main contribution to international politics, a festival of xenophobic hate against Europe. The Tories, BNP, UKIP and the Daily Mail would win the vote – but at the cost of reducing Britain's influence across the Channel and Atlantic to zero.

I told you it was bizarre didn't I?  I mean, for a start Camoron is a rampant eurofederalist, as is the bulk of the leadership of the Tory Party.  You only have to look at the voting records of their MEPs to see the extent to which they have embraced the idea of European integration.  MacShane also seems to be in dire need of a dictionary.  Xenophobia is an irrational fear of foreigners and not, as he seems to believe, the perfectly rational opposition to having your country absorbed into a facist EU superstate.  And does anyone really believe that we have any influence in the EU?  Anyone?  Or that our influence in the US and the wider anglosphere is somehow improved by us cutting our ties with the people we have most in common with in favour of a political union with a group of countries who don't even have the concept of innocent until proven guilty in their legal system?  Give me a break, this man is in cloud cookoo land.

MacShane might be a bit of a fruit loop but Patten gave him the material ...

New Norway Poll - 53% No to EU, only 36% Yes

A fresh poll shows that a large majority of Norwegians oppose membership of the EU. Of those asked, 53 per cent say no to Norway becoming a member of the union, while 36 per cent say yes.

The number of voters in favour is far lower than it was at the 1994 referendum. At that time, 47.8 voted in favour, while 52.2 per cent were against.

The majority of the nation's political parties are also against EU membership.
Both the Socialist Left Party (SV), the Christian Democrats (KrF), the Liberal Left (Venstre) and the Agrarians (SP) are opposed.

The Conservative (Hoeyre) and Labour (Arbeiderpartiet) want membership, while the right wing Progress Party (FrP) is undecided. Those opposed to EU membership claim that the EU is becoming a closed club, showing no solidarity with the developing world, closing its borders to both people and goods.

Those who favour membership, on the other hand, say that Norwegian membership is important in order to show solidarity with the poorer nations of Europe.
Norway already contributes a large sum annually to the EU development fund, as part of the EEA agreement.

Vincent De Roeck on UKIP - Why a Belgian libertarian blogger supports a British political party

Vincent De Roeck, the noted Belgian eurosceptic, has very kindly supplied a translation of an article he wrote about, amongst other things, UKIP:

Vincent De Roeck on UKIP - Why a Belgian libertarian blogger supports a British political party

Europe’s main Eurosceptical formation, the United Kingdom Independence Party, of which I am a staunch supporter, held its annual convention earlier this month in Bournemouth, England. My personal affection for UKIP dates back to their “Say No!”-campaign and the EU elections of 2004. But since the party at that time was mainly dominated by leftists and statists like Robert Kilroy-Silk or Ashley Mote, I could only agree upon their stands regarding further EU integration back then.

But this overall situation soon started to improve. In the aftermath of the grand victory of UKIP in the 2004 elections, both Kilroy-Silk and Mote left the party, voluntarily or not, and they took the entire socialist and right-extremist wings of UKIP along with them. And thank God they did…

When Nigel Farage MEP, a colourful politician known for his flamboyant speeches and boyish style, finally rose to power and became the new party leader, a fresh breath of air was released within UKIP. Farage immediately got rid of many old policies and viewpoints, and went back to the core of Anglo-Saxon conservatism. He not only embraced the legacy of Margaret Thatcher, but also started to defend more libertarian values, often against the wills, customs and plans of the old party bosses.

But Farage never minded this and in spite of being subject to harsh opposition, his reformist steadfastness eventually prevailed. Farage finally managed to secure this new libertarian-like platform on this year’s UKIP convention, turning me - and many other continental Eurocritical libertarians with me - into even bigger supporters of UKIP. A true libertarian party in Britain at last.

And it is not only in continental Europe that this new UKIP platform with conservative, libertarian and Eurosceptical accents is well received. Polls and inquiries in Britain also show that UKIP is once again on the rise, even with the Tories adopting a more anti-EU platform as well. During the 2004-2009 session of the EU Parliament, UKIP achieved not by hazard a highly respectable and ideologically consistent status among both libertarians and conservatives.

Proof? Two Tory Members of the House of Lords and one Conservative Member of the House of Commons defected to UKIP in the past years, and many Tory MEPs today - like Daniel Hannan or Roger Helmer - are even publicly supportive of UKIP positions in the area of EU politics.

In their convention in Bournemouth, UKIP also reached out to more moderate Britons by changing its aggressive tone and rhetoric, without hurting their underlying libertarian-leaning philosophy in any way. For instance, the cheap populist slogan “Let’s get our country back!” was finally removed and replaced by “Freedom to choose”, not by accident the same name as Milton Friedman’s notorious movie series.

So in brief, the new UKIP is not only simply refreshing to watch but also to rally behind, and hopefully, they can achieve even greater things in June 2009 than they did five years ago. Europe counts on them.

UKIP DEVIZES - PUBLIC MEETING

Party Leader Nigel Farage will be speaking on 12th October in Marlborough at the Town Hall starting at 2.00 pm. He will be joined by Neil Hamilton, barrister, former MP and Government Minister and UKIP Councillor Alan Wood. Entrance is free and open to everyone. Contact Malcolm Wood 01722-744 814.

Leafleting in the West Midlands

Derek Bennett, UKIP's regional organiser for the West Midlands, has sent out the following request for help:

Dear UKIP member/supporter.

From now on, once a month, UKIP in the West Midlands will be having campaigning days delivering leaflets supplied by Alan Brown, The first campaigning day is to be in Leamington on Saturday 11th October.

We will meet up and start in the morning delivering leaflets for about two hours, then break for lunch where we will meet up in a pub, and continue for a further two hours in the afternoon. If we can get twenty or more UKIP activists delivering leaflets in deferent areas each month up until the Euro Elections next June we will be able to put out a lot of leaflets.

Are you willing to help UKIP in this campaign? If so please let me know by either e-mail or give me a call. Lets get stuck in and make an impact, we want to make the Euro elections will be the referendum we were promised but never given. I look forward to hearing from you.

Derek's contact details are on the UKIP Walsall & Wolverhampton Branch website.

New UKIP Forum

Any UKIP members here ?? Might like to know that a new UKIP members only forum has just been set up so UKIP members can discuss strategy's and campaigning tips etc.

This is a Members only forum and you will be asked for your membership number upon registration !

http://induk.informe.com/

Hear Nigel Farage speak

29 Sept, 2:30pm: Conservative Conference Fringe Meeting with Simon Heffer, Dan Hannan and Roger Helmer. The Birmingham and Midland Institute, B3 3BS.

2 Oct: Question Time, BBC1 (Birmingham).

24 Oct, 7:30pm: UKIP Public Meeting, East Devon, West Hill Village Hall, EX11 1UQ. Contact John Kelly 01395 276 130.

30 Oct: UKIP Public Meeting, St. Luke’s Church Centre, Seaford, East Sussex. Contact Kris Latham 01323 872 400.

31 Oct: UKIP Public Meeting, Ramsgate. Venue t.b.a. Contact Steve Harris 01903 885 573.

6 Nov: UKIP Public Meeting, The Barn, West Worthing BN13 1NP. Contact John Wallace 07966 215 467.

Breaking News: England Expects shut down by EU

It's no secret that Federal Europe hates blogs - they don't like the idea of a source of topical information and commentary that they can't control. Hence their calls for regulation of blogs.

Sadly, they have found a way of silencing Gawain Towler, the author of England Expects. Gawain works for the Independence and Democracy group in the EU Parliament and is bound by their rules which says he isn't allowed to do anything that brings Federal Europe into disrepute or otherwise gives the impression that the undemocratic, corrupt European Union is anything other than the best thing since sliced bread. I'm paraphrasing here but you get the picture.

Unfortunately, the threat of being fined up to four months' salary by Federal Europe's propaganda police means that he has got to stop writing his blog and another independent voice of dissent has been drowned out by the eurofederalists.

It's a sad day indeed but Gawain is free - as is anyone else on the inside of this corrupt organisation - to contact us in complete confidence and we'll quite happily spread the word. Contact details in the sidebar.

EU're a bunch of losers

America has won the Ryder Cup for the first time since 1999.

The Ryder Cup was originally an Anglo-American competition but over time it has been appropriated by Federal Europe as an opportunity to foster a "European Identity".  They're ably assisted, of course, by the good old BBC whose coverage of the Ryder Cup was all about how "we" were doing against the Americans.

Team Europe isn't Team EU but that doesn't stop Federal Europe ploughing millions into the event, covering everything in the EU ring of stars and the European team using a .eu web address.  The Ryder Cup team is the thin end of the wedge - Federal Europe wants an EU Olympic team and football team.

I don't know about you but despite having no interest in golf whatsoever, I still rooted for the American team just to see the EU's tame propagandists lose.

Video: Out of Control

UKIP and the Ind Dem group have produced a new video called "Out of Control: How the EU is costing you the earth".

There are two versions:

Low Res (less than 2mbit connection)

High Res (2mbit connection or higher)

Meetings: Swindon and North Wilts

Details of the following meetings have just been sent to us by the Chairman of UKIP Swindon:

The SW Region are holding a strategy meeting hosted by Swindon UKIP. The venue is the Nightingale Hotel, Old Vicarage Lane, South Marston, Swindon SN3 4SH. It will start at 7pm on Tuesday 14th October.

Trevor Colman and another MEP candidate will be present. The meeting is to discuss our campaign for 2009 and all SW branches are asked to at least send a representative, and as many activists as you wish (the venue can hold 150).

Contact Bob Feal-Martinez
Chairman and PPC Swindon Branch
r.feal-martinez@btconnect.com

---

Also there is a Wiltshire Group Meeting;

The next UKIP Wiltshire County Meeting will take place on Tuesday 30 September at 7:30pm. It will be held at the Lysley Arms on the A4 between Chippenham and Calne, in the Coach House.

With both the European and unitary authority elections looming next year, we need to step up preparations for both. At the meeting we will be able to update you on preparations in the South West, and how we can all help the campaigns. It would also be useful to run though the state of preparedness of each of the branches, particularly progress in choosing council candidates.

The meeting is open to committee members from each of the branches, with Chairmen, PPCs and council candidates particularly encouraged to attend.

Contact Richard Wright
North Wilts Branch
ukip.northwilts@btopenworld.com

UKIP Public Meetings: Southampton, Worthing West, Devon

A reader has sent in details of the following UKIP public meetings:

Southampton

Nigel Farage will be speaking and answering questions from the audience on Monday 22nd September 2008 at The Legacy Botleigh Grange Hotel, Grange Road, Hedge End nr Southampton starting at 7.30 pm and will last for approx 2 hours.  The hotel is located on the A334 Grange Road between West End and Botley.  We have been allocated the millenium suite and there is adequate parking on site.  David Samuel will act as chairman for the evening and the theme will be UKIP- your questions answered.  Please note that this is a public meeting.

Worthing West

Worthing West will be holding a public meeting on 2nd October 2008 at The Barn, Field Place, Worthing.  Speakers will be: Nigel Farage MEP & Douglas Denny, PPC for Bognor & Littlehampton.

East Devon

East Devon is holding a public meeting on October 24th at 7.30pm at the West Hill Village hall, nr Ottery St Mary, Devon.  Speakers include William Dartmouth, Laura Moralee, and Nigel Farage.

If you have any UKIP events in your area, please get in touch.  Contact details are in the sidebar.

Market Rasen by-election: Tory -v- UKIP

The residents of Market Rasen, Lincolnshire, probably don't realise it but a great deal of attention will be paid to their by-election in a couple of weeks.

The Tories are resurgent in the polls with a projected 52% share of the vote were there a general election tomorrow.  If, that is, the only competition was the Labour Party and the Lib Dems.

On the 9th of October, residents of the Market Rasen area will elect a new district councillor for the Middle Rasen ward and there are only two candidates: a Tory and a UKIPper.

Stuart Wheeler has already threatened to cut his ties with the Tories over their eurofederalist stance, will voters do the same?

Announcement

A couple of people over at the British Democracy Forum think that visitors might be confused over whether Bloggers 4 UKIP is an official UKIP website.

I thought it would be pretty obvious that it's not an official UKIP website but just in case anyone was wondering: no, this isn't an official UKIP blog - UKIP has no involvement or input into this blog and unless they decide to send their press releases this way, they probably never will.

Evening Standard: Tory donor threatens to defect over Europe

Stuart Wheeler, one of the Tories' biggest donors, has brought David Cameron back down to earth with a thud greeting the news that the Tories have just polled 52% in an IPSOS MORI poll compared to Labour's 24% with a threat that he will defect to UKIP next year if the Tories don't buck their ideas up over the EU.

Cameron is a committed eurofederalist so I guess all that remains for me to say is "Welcome to UKIP Mr Wheeler".

Tory donor threatens to defect over Europe

David Cameron was today threatened by the possible defection of one of the Tories' biggest donors in a row over Europe.

Spread betting tycoon Stuart Wheeler hinted he may back Ukip in next year's European elections unless Mr Cameron hardens policy on Europe.

The businessman bailed out the Conservatives with a record £5 million gift in 2001 and has continued to give smaller sums. But he made clear he did not trust the Conservative leader not to relegate the thorny issue of Europe to "the back burner" if he wins power.

Mr Wheeler said: "The reality is that a new Conservative government will have a great deal it wants to achieve which has nothing whatsoever to do with Europe. It does not like thinking about Europe. So Europe is all too likely to be put on the back burner." Mr Wheeler was delivering today's second annual Goldsmith lecture - in memory of financier Sir James Goldsmith, whose anti-EU Referendum Party stood against Conservatives in the 1997 election.

He is demanding that Mr Cameron commit the Tories to an "immediate and massive" renegotiation of Britain's relationship with the EU if he wins power, including junking the Lisbon Treaty. Mr Cameron has so far only pledged to block Lisbon if it has not been ratified by all 27 member states.

In recent months Mr Wheeler has been courted by Ukip leader Nigel Farage, whom he calls "clever and articulate".

He mounted a legal challenge this year to Gordon Brown's decision to ratify the Treaty, arguing the Prime Minister had unlawfully reneged on an election promise to hold a referendum.

Bob Spink asks for support for Macmillan Cancer Relief

A message from UKIP MP, Dr Bob Spink ...

Go on… Enjoy yourself and be good!

JOIN THE WORLD'S BIGGEST COFFEE MORNING

SAT 27TH SEPT

10.00AM TO 12.00 noon

ST MARY'S CHURCH HALL

376 HIGH ROAD BENFLEET

IN AID OF MACMILLAN CANCER SUPPORT

RAFFLE, CAKE STALL,CHRISTMAS CARDS,

WIN £1500 JOHN LEWIS VOUCHERS

PLEASE SUPPORT THIS WORTHY CAUSE.

Many thanks

This is a St Mary’s Church function. Please email Terry Babbage if you want further details.

terry.babbage@talktalk.net

What's all this about?

The blogosphere is full of UKIP members and supporters - name three.  Struggling?

New media - and blogs in particular - are becoming increasingly important to political parties and the next election will heavily influenced, if not won, by what is said about a party on the internet.

Conservative supporters dominate the political blogging world whilst Labour and the Lib Dems have largely failed to take advantage of the opportunities that the internet provides.  Every negative story about UKIP in the news is seized on by Tory blogs who enjoy nothing more that a spot of UKIP-bashing.  Conservatives obviously consider UKIP to be their biggest threat, it should be taken as a compliment!

It's time for UKIP bloggers to stand up and be counted.

If you are a UKIP blogger (either a member or supporter) then get in touch and we'll add your blog to the list.  Similarly, if you would like to write for Bloggers 4 UKIP, get in touch.