UKIP Uncovered

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

Tuesday, June 22, 2004

UKIP SET ON SLIDE TO SLEAZINESS

The first NEC meeting following the stunning Kilroy coup of the Euro-elections, was a fork in the road for UKIP. Ignoring the way to the high-ground the party's leadership seems blindly bound for the bogs.

As a classic example of all that has been wrong with the party's governance in the recent past, the attempt to bounce the NEC into a rushed, ill-considered and uninformed decision on the appointment of Piers Merchant as the party's Chief Executive carries all the classic hallmarks:-

- There was no prior discussion on the need for such a position.

- There was no attempt to first define the functions and responsibilities.

- Lacking any job description, there was no definition of the qualifications the candidates should possess.

- There was no reference to an executive recruitment specialist or advertisements placed.

- There were no short-lists, interviews or selection procedures whatever.

Rather the National Executive Committee were informed that the present Chairman David Lott had resigned and being tired, was not prepared to continue with his duties beyond five o'clock that evening. The suggested replacement Chairman, mentioned as possibly Paul Sykes would not be immediately available, therefore the Party Leader proposed appointing the failed North East MEP candidate, the disgraced former MP Piers Merchant as Party Chief Executive at a salary of between 75,000 to 150,000 a year, with the appointment effective immediately.

Amazingly enough this was possible as Merchant was said to be immediately available, as he had extraordinarily resigned his previous post of Campaign's Director for the London Chamber of Commerce in order, he alleged to concentrate on the Euro election campaign in the North East. A claim not borne out by reports from that region which described the UKIP campaign as essentially invisible.

Suffice it to say, the newly constituted NEC showed the exact same spinelessness as its predecessor, and in spite of the total unsuitability of Merchant as a candidate, let alone a Chief Executive for which he has no qualifications whatever - this shameful and disgraced individual was placed in charge of the party, albeit as 'temporary' Party Chief Executive.

Whether or not his urge to become more closely involved with the party is driven by economic necessity, or the fact that the cause for his disgracing the Conservatives, Anna Cox, has reportedly recently joined UKIP, must be open to conjecture. Who however, being unemployed (if not in the uncharitable view of some - even practically unemployable) would not grab at such a post?

The long list of disgraced conservatives now being welcomed into UKIP with open arms by their ex-Conservative colleague and present Party Leader, Roger Knapman, continues to grow, with Jonathan Aitkin (who provided one of the few dark spots of the recent campaign by his public demonstration of support for UKIP) has also become a full memeber we hear. Others already associated with UKIP with part responsibility for the Conservatives becoming synonymous with sleaze are:-

Neil Hamilton
John Browne
Charles Wardle
Piers Merchant
Jonathan Aikin

Perhaps there are others I have missed, or worse yet to come! (Anyone heard from Lord Archer of late)?

How can UKIP maximise its electoral appeal on what MUST now be a major theme of any campaign - the abuses of the system by all the existing political parties, when they welcome into UKIP ranks people found guilty of the worst personal examples of such abuses, who are not even tolerated or permitted to remain in office in the parties we most need to attack.

The message to the electorate and existing party members couldn't be more clear - its two fingers to you from the UKIP leadership while the worst of the professional political pillagers are welcomed by their old friends to resume the abuses that ordinary people joined or voted for UKIP to bring to an end!

If Knapman cannot see that, which it appears he cannot - I feel sure Kilroy can! Was that then another cause for the attacks by Lance-Watkins?

If Piers Merchant is confirmed in his now temporary post, then UKIP cannot be seen as a vehicle for change!

posted by Martin |5:19 AM