UKIP Uncovered

UKIP Uncovered
What motivates the leaders of the United Kingdom Independence Party?

Monday, April 19, 2004

Nikki Sinclaire loses NEC support

- "wrecked NEC elections could cost party its Euro seats" say NEC members

We understand that growing numbers on the UKIP NEC are expressing concern at the behaviour of recently installed Acting Party Secretary Nikki Sinclaire after she was accused of sending a backdated e-mail to justify a bungled attempt to expel Damian Hockney from the party and to prevent his Appeal Hearing.

She made the botched attempt over the Appeal Hearing, and tried to stop the NEC elections procedure, we are told, after consulting with the party leadership on 9th April 2004.

Since then she is reported as having sent out what have been described as "abusive and hysterical" messages to the NEC justifying her actions, inviting Damian Hockney to sue her, describing him as "thick"and "deceitful", and suggesting that no-one have anything to do with him (all because he questioned her backdated e-mail): NEC members, including previous supporters, have questioned her suitability for the role. It is widely felt that the botched attempt to prevent the Hockney Appeal could actually damage the party's election chances. Damian Hockney has made clear that the party leadership is engaged upon a continuous campaign of malicious attacks on him and his 'Reform UKIP' team. The Reform UKIP team are standing for the NEC elections on a common platform to reform the party.

As part of her actions Nikki Sinclaire has attempted to cancel the NEC elections. If successful, this too will blow up in the party's face during the Euro Elections campaign and NEC members hope that the Returning Officer Craig Mackinlay - whose legal responsibility this matter is - will swallow hard and stop her from wrecking the elections. But it will not be easy. Although Craig Mackinlay is legally responsible, Nikki Sinclaire knew he was out of the country, claiming in the backdated e-mail that she "couldn't get in touch with him", and that this forced her to suspend the elections. It is effectively a fait accompli of the worst sort. The elections will now have to be staged later in the month, costing the party more money and running during the Euro Elections campaign. The potential for electoral disaster is obvious, with the press keen to exploit any difficulties and the leadership clearly incapable of exercising restraint in its attacks upon candidates for the NEC.

One NEC member has apparently placed a bet with another that the leadership will not be able to resist continuing to smear candidates it disapproves of as "BNP plants", failing to understand the fact that timing is all and that such allegations will rebound and wreck the Euro Elections campaign. What will the media make of a leadership which openly smears its own NEC election candidates as "BNP plants" but does nothing about it except smear them as such? If they believe their allegations and have proof, why do they do nothing about it through the normal party channels? The candidates could be removed instantly if it were true. But of course the leadership do NOT believe that candidates they disapprove of are "BNP plants" - this is just a way of smearing them.

What is worse, sources tell us, Nikki Sinclaire has now also declared that anyone who she does not approve of on the NEC is "timed out" due the the delays in holding the elections! What this means is that the leadership have twice sabotaged the NEC elections since late January 2004, stopping people from being re-elected...and then conveniently said that NEC members like Damian Hockney up for re-election are not any longer NEC members because the elections have not been held and they are 'timed out'! "It is a disgraceful Kafka-esque move born out of desparation and panic...and it leaves the NEC short of the numbers required by the Constitution", as one closely involved in these manoueverings has confided to us.

posted by Martin |7:30 AM