UKIP in Crisis: Gerard Batten slams Farage and Pearson in press release

A member of Gerard Batten's team has asked Junius to publish his latest press release. We are more than happy to oblige.


PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Press Release

Gerard Batten MEP

Response to Lord Pearson's offer of an electoral deal with the Tories

I read with appalled incredulity the front page of the Times on Saturday 28th November in which it was revealed that as Nigel Farage's messenger, Lord Pearson offered to stand UKIP down at the next general election, if the Tories promised a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. I have read with almost equal incredulity the response put out by the UKIP Press Office today.

Nigel Farage and Lord Pearson had no authority to make this offer. It amounts to a betrayal of UKIP and its members, the vast majority of whom have expressed their opposition to any kind of electoral deals when given the opportunity to do so.

Lord Pearson won UKIP's leadership contest without mentioning the proposed deal. Throughout the six hustings meetings in November he heard the thunderous applause I received when I said that under my leadership 'there would be no deals with the Tories or anyone else'. Had he spoken up before the campaign there would have been a completely different result.

If the Conservative or Labour Party wish to offer a referendum on EU membership they are perfectly at liberty to do so without any offers from UKIP. This matter was never discussed with the UKIP MEPs, the elected representatives of the Party. Had it been a number of us would have resisted it and demanded that it first be put to a vote by the entire Party membership.

If it were agreed by the National Executive Committee at the time the offer was made in June, as now being indicated by Nigel Farage in the UKIP Press Office Press Release, then I challenge the Party Chairman to publish the relevant section of the NEC minutes and prove it.

Such an offer is against clause 3.1 of the UKIP Constitution that says, 'The Party shall take part in all democratic electoral processes. It shall contest Westminster and European Parliamentary elections...' This is not a case of 'country before party' but a case of putting the Tory party before UKIP.

Lord Pearson has been quoted as saying that he is still prepared to do deals. How can we expect candidates to incur all the time, trouble and expense of standing for the general election when they don't know if they will be stood down in an electoral deal to be done with those who have betrayed our country for decades and who cannot be trusted to honour any deal they may make?

I ask all the UKIP members who are equally appalled as I am to stay in the Party and oppose any electoral deals.

Gerard Batten
Member of the European Parliament for London
UK Independence Party

End of statement.

UKIP is falling apart.

At long last Gerard is showing some backbone. As you can imagine Farage and the sycophants are demanding his head on a platter!

We have been told that he may even walk over this if nothing changes.