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


Tuesday, September 28, 2004 

UKIP in Hartlepool from The Guardian

The following is an extract from this morning's paper, linked here:-

Ghosts of grander days still graced the Tory HQ; the smart suits, the luxurious battle bus. Nothing of the sort elevated the Ukip campaign, which squashed itself into an old clothes shop at the other end of York Road, and had to make to do at first without even phone lines. The wild profusion of union flags suggested perhaps a village fete more than a political party, and the campaign got off to a wobbly start.

Ukip selected a sweet-natured and likeable management consultant called Stephen Allison, 44. He had been an independent Hartlepool councillor, so was well known and popular in the town. But he had already belonged to both Labour and the Tories previously, and admitted at the outset to being "completely politically naive". When help arrived from the national party, it came in an improbable duet: ex-Tory MP, Piers Merchant, and ex-US naval officer, Steve Harris. Merchant is scrupulous concerning pinstripes and cufflinks. Harris, is a coarse, jowly "American slob" (his own words), who characterised their partnership as "Laurel and Hardy. No, better still, the Odd Couple".

If comedy value decided elections, Ukip would gain their first MP on Thursday. A garrulous ex-hack called Clive Page was put in charge of press, and took the view that, "It's only politics; nobody dies. You've got to have a laugh." An incorrigible wit ("Welcome to Hartlepool; 90,000 people, and only eight surnames") Page's only serious complaint was that the Hartlepool Mail refused to take Ukip seriously. Frustrated by the paper's preference for stories about children stung by bees, Page soon resorted to amusing himself by issuing spoof press releases about a fox savaging Allison's chickens

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posted by Martin |8:41 AM
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