UKIP: The Shame of the NEC

UKIP Press Office release official portrait of the NEC

There have been rumblings of discontent amongst the membership that the NEC gerrymandered the selection process to decide who would head up the Assembly List, this being the one part of the London elections where we might actually get someone elected.

Despite asking the membership to select the candidates that they would like to see at the top of that list (something that had to be done twice because it was cocked up first time) the NEC in their ‘infinite wisdom’ moved Steven Woolfe from no. 4 to the top slot pushing those that the members actually chose further down the list. See: LINK

Move forward one week and we find ourselves embroiled in discussion about the new constitution and the very real concern of the members that this will enable the MEP lists to be gerrymandered in the same way as the London Assembly one.

As Party Chairman Steve Crowther has felt the need to defend his new constitution and has sent out a number of emails, one of which is part copied below. The part in bold makes for interesting reading, and if we are to believe it to be true; why then was Steven Woolfe a member of about two years, resident in Chester placed above David Coburn and Lawrence Webb both of whom have been in the party a greater length of time and have been working to promote UKIP in London for quite some number of years. What does Steven Woolfe know about the workings of the London Assembly…?

From: Steve Crowther [mailto:sjcrowther@btinternet.com]
Sent: 10 February 2012 16:55
Subject: Our New Constitution

Dear UKIP Member

What the new Constitution offers us

Second: selection of candidates and the Party's Approved List.

It has been suggested that the new Constitution reserves new powers to the NEC to select all candidates, and so will inhibit people from standing in local elections.

In fact, the new Constitution clarifies the NEC's vitally important role in making sure that people who are going to stand – and increasingly, these days, get elected – for public office are suitable to represent us properly.

What do we mean by suitable? Essentially, we mean committed to our cause, loyal to the party, up to the job, knowledgeable about our policies and prepared to dedicate themselves, not to becoming professional politicians, but to furthering our cause and repaying the efforts of the members who got them elected.

These things are the basis of the new Assessment process for PPCs and Assembly candidates which has proved so successful (and popular with participants) since it was introduced a year ago.

And all this is happening as Nigel Farage stands in the EU parliament bemoaning the loss of democracy in Greece, maybe he should be looking closer to home and fighting for the democratic right of UKIP’s members!