Conservatives must beat UKIP before they beat Brown, says John Flack, one of our ace candidates in the Eastern Region Euro Election.
These are his reasons why:
When UKIP asks you to “lend them your vote†at the Euro Election please, please, don’t be fooled again. Although their message may perhaps be understandably superficially attractive to many Conservatives, a vote for UKIP is truly a wasted vote. For despite returning 12 MEPs last time, a third of whom have left or been expelled, they have totally failed to deliver on any of their promises.
Look beyond the rhetoric at their dismal record:
- UKIP let down small business by failing to support proposals to cut red tape and by voting against an initiative to “name and shame†countries who flout the single market rules that are one of the prime benefits of UK membership.
- UKIP let down British fishermen when they failed to join Conservatives opposing French and Spanish plans to scrap British protected fishing zones.
- UKIP even failed to vote against barmy EU regulations, such as those forcing companies to monitor the exposure of their employees to sunlight and supply sun cream if necessary.
- UKIP has repeatedly failed to crack down on fraud and corruption – no wonder when one of their own MEPs has been sent to prison for fraud and Tom Wise, elected last time for UKIP in the Eastern Region, is currently on bail over serious fraud charges.
In the words of their own former member Robert Kilroy–Silk, UKIP is a “joke†and a Party he felt “ashamed†to belong to.
We are exposing them here in the East of England where we are on track to win two seats back from UKIP with our clear message, “We’re on YOUR side, not Brussels.”
But even more important than us winning seats back in the
East of England is the fact that any vote “lent†to the fringe Parties is an anti-Conservative vote that will give comfort and succour to Gordon Brown.
So please on June 4th, Vote for Change, Vote Conservative.
Robert-Kilroy Silk was never leader of UKIP.
Tim, you are absolutely right, and I have amended accordingly. Wasn’t that the reason he left?
I don’t understand.
Not one person voted to be in the European Union. Not one. Most people want out and the politicians know it – so they dare not give us a referendum. (And I don’t mean on the Lisbon Treaty)
So to vote for ANYONE in the EU elections is to unwittingly acknowledge the legitimacy of this corrupt and undemocratic organisation. An insidious takeover by stealth.
This will lead to Gulags.
I agree. UKIP is a gimmick party that needs to be sorted out before brown is beaten.
Also, the writer says that 1/3rd of UKIP MEPs have left. There were 12 UKIP MEPs elected, and there are now 9. That’s 1/4, not 1/3rd.
I really think that the biggest threat to mainstream voters left/right is the BNP….
Dear Ellee,
John Flack is an amusing guy and it was good to debate against him at Brentwood School. But he already is getting his facts wrong here.
But if he attacks UKIP in this lowhand way, let me just remind him of a few facts himself.
Firstly, three quarters of Tory supporters ( I was one for 20 years myself ) are Eurosceptics. They believed Mr Cameron when he said the Tories would leave the fedearalist, pro Lisbon, pro Euro political grouping in the European Parliament, the EPP-ED. They are still waiting, and the Times reported that only 7 out of 26 Tory MEPs were in favour of leaving because they get more prestige and position from being in a bigger group, even if they don’t agree with its aims.
2. Look at the record of Tory MEPs, such as Eastern Region’s own Christopher Beazley MEP who voted for EU symbols and the EU national anthem ( Beethoven’s 9th ) to be played at all major events, and who votes consistently for the EU to take yet more powers away from the UK – is that a record to be proud of ? UKIP MEPs vote consistently against any measures that undermine British control of its own affairs.
3. Mr Flack attack fraud and corruption, but UKIP acts fast against bad apples, whilst Conservative MEPs let the European Parliament decide. He failed to mention the Leader of Tory MEPs, Giles Chichester, and Cameron’s enforcer on cleaning up MEP expenses, having to resign over what he called a ‘whoopsy daisy’ moment ( a technical breach but not dishonest ) or Den Dover who was found to have siphoned off 500,000 of expenses unjustifiably. They are others too alleged to be in the same boat.
4. The Tory policy over the Lisbon Treaty is misleading and weak. No wonder the Tory ‘launch’ today hardly mentioned the Euro elections at all. They are terrified of Ken Clarke spoliing the party again, and Mr Cameron has told 70 of his MPs not to mention the EU.
The reality of Conservative policy is simply to let other countries decide the future of our own: if the Poles, Czechs or the Irish stop Lisbon before they get into Government, they’ll have a referendum. But what if Lisbon is already ratified by then ? They will do nothing about it – just meekly accept it. That is just not good enough. Only by lending their vote to UKIP can Tories send a strong No vote on Lisbon !
John Flack claimed at Brentwood the Conservatives had given an “unequivocal†commitment to a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. Not true. The policy is equivocal, and misleading. In short, the Tories would let Lisbon stay because it would be illegal then to reverse the treaty. Only by leaving the EU can we get rid of Lisbon – and polls show 55%-60% of the British electorate want to trade happily with the EU but not be in the superstate – which is UKIP policy.
5. The reality is, as former Tory and £5 million donor, UKIP convert Stuart Wheeler says: “The public know that the EU is incompetent, ineffective, hidebound and riven with fraud but the current political class in Westminster don’t want to talk about it. By voting UKIP they can be heard.â€
I would ask good Eurosceptics, and others, to recognise that UKIP came second in the East of England last time, and the EU is a far bigger threat now than even then.
Whatever Mr Flack may say, it is indeed time to ‘Lend Us Your Vote’ once more. You are not choosing a Government, you are making a statement – and only UKIP can make that statement loud and clear.
Best wishes
David Campbell Bannerman
Lead Candidate UKIP for East of England ( and UKIP Deputy Leader )
DCB has already said most of what I want to say, for of course he is the Deputy Leader of a party which I am only a candidate for, only a member of the press office for.
But this does grate.
““We’re on YOUR side, not Brussels,†”
Umm, that should be “Brussels'”
Being asked to vote for an illiterate, even in these modern times, doesn’t quite do it for me.
If Mr. Flack were able to identify what he got wrong here I might listen a tad more.
Although, to be honest, his regurgitation of Central Office talking points, with added grammatical errors, isn’t as yet worth listening to.
Hi, and thank you all for your comments. I have just caught up with John en route for a hectic day’s campaigning in Norfolk and he is delighted to have attracted your views which he will respond to very late in the day when he returns.
Just back from 8 hours on the doorsteps of Mid Norfolk and then Ipswich. Met dozens of people who all seem to understand that June 4th is all about serving a notice to quit on Gordon Brown as well as voting for a mainstream Party that will actually deliver on it’s promises to bring power back from Brussels.
Only a BIG Conservative vote will do that, a vote for ANY fringe party or Candidate, be it UKIP, BNP, Robin Page or the Lib Dems will only risk not giving GB the drubbing (good Norfolk word!) he deserves.
Apologies for incorrectly stating Robert Kilroy-Silk was once UKIP leader (he has certainly been their most high profile member – and leaver, ever) and as for my punctuation – I thought the idea of blogs were they were “instant”?
I’m grateful to David C.B (if I may) he too seems a pretty decent guy from our meeting in Brentwood and from my chat with him still a good Conservative at heart. So can I extend an open invitation to you David, come on home to the Conservatives, we will make you very welcome, either before or after June 4th.
As to the other points made can I suggest that you look at my personal website – http://www.GiveEuropeFlack.org.uk – it will give anyone interested all the information they need to judge whether I, as part of the revitalised Conservative Team in the East, is who you want actually doing the job and standing up for the East of England in the European Parliament. And finally I proudly restate –
I’m (and all my six colleagues are) on YOUR side, not Brussels.
What I question mums at the school gate and others about Europe they told me that they are fed up with being bossed around by the EU, we are Britain first – but I also hear them talking about businesses they know locally who are trading and exporting not just at home but across the EU and the world to dig ourselves out of our economic hole…. There are no simple solutions to our problems today but the UKIP idea that we can just hide under the duvet and pretend the rest of the world will go away just doesn’t wash either.
I wouldn’t vote for UKIP if I was over there, but I wouldn’t vote Tory either! I probably wouldn’t vote Labour now, so that leaves the LibDems or Plaid Cymru!
There all on the gravy train .
Im still voting for Pagey , at least he’d dare to stand up and be rude to them all as they deserve.
PS cant wait to see if the Tories ” expenses ” claims are as bad as Labour .
I expect they will be , another gravy train on the take and on the make.
Why a vote for the Conservative party is a wasted vote. For the first time in my life I might just vote Labour.