Of course, if that had been true we would not have come second in the European Elections but let that pass.
The UKIP campaign will be launched on March 19 at the conference in Milton Keynes. More information will be sent out and posted on the UKIP website as time goes on. It is to be hoped that members will make an effort to attend precisely because this will see the start of the election campaign.
In the meantime, it is worth remembering that an important reason why the Conservative Party gets bogged down in personal attacks on the Prime Minister (not a very likeable chap but the Tories manage to pull public sympathy round in his favour) is because they cannot quite put together a set of credible policies. Above all, they cannot quite work out what they want to do on the European issue.
The news from Bruno Waterfield in the Daily Telegraph that the arch-europhile Shadow Business Secretary Kenneth Clarke is off to Brussels to "reassure" Commission President Barroso that the Conservatives, should they win the election will play nicely with all the other member states does not indicate a robust attitude. It is not clear what it is Mr Clarke needs to reassure Mr Barroso about. It is not as if we were negotiating with the EU - we are part of it and we must accept its diktats. Every Minister has admitted it and the Conservatives will do the same.
Let us not forget that David Cameron's personal popularity started plummeting around last November. Iain McWhirter comments on this in the Herald
David Cameron’s popularity vis a vis Gordon Brown has halved in six months, even as Prime Minister’s character has darkened. The Tories themselves are baffled by this, and I don’t quite understand it myself. Cameron was a fresh face, a new kind of liberal Tory who seemed prepared to replace the “nasty party” image with new kind of environmental conservatism.It is entirely possible that people do not like the new kind of liberal Tory or environmental conservatism, particularly with all the scandals around the climate change hysteria.
Of course, the media does not see it: it was about six months ago that David Cameron reneged on his "cast-iron guarantee" to give the people of Britain a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty. The people of this country have not forgotten or forgiven him.
Thank you for the update.
ReplyDeletePlease don't underestimate the power of blogging and what it can do for you. You also should not underestimate the amount of support that stands by, waiting to leap into action.
Tearing lumps out of mad uncle Gordon long ago ceased to be a fair sport. There is just too much material to work with. It has become childs play. I think his goose is cooked.
Clegg? Another fence-sitting failure. I have convinced myself that the LibDems exist purely to satisfy ditherers. No hope there.
CMD continues to harm himself and his party by appearing to be Blue Labour. By refusing to commit to curing the most serious problems we have-the economy, leaving the EU, drastically reducing the authoritarian Big Brother antics, and a host of other subjects-he leaves voters wondering just what the hell they are up to.
UKIP has to perform well, it has to be supported and we have to get you in power if we are to start turning back the clock on the mountain of new, needless legislation that is crushing this country. The first step is to leave the EU and trade with it like the Norwegians do. There is a working model so we know it can be done. Once we are out we can pause, take stock, and begin to repair our country.
One thing is clear to me: LibLabCon do not have the spine, the tools, the imagination, or the drive to do this vital repair work.
CR.
'One thing is clear to me: LibLabCon do not have the spine, the tools, the imagination, or the drive to do this vital repair work.'
ReplyDeleteThe problem is the one thing that Lab,Con and to a lesser degree Lib do have, is constant media coverage to the point where you would be forgiven for thinking that there were only these parties.
conservatives i have talked with want thatcherism not blulabour, and most consider cameron similar to a primary school headteacher leading a primary school front bench my nieghbour a tory activist, two local councillors an ex local tory activist now ukip member were among the people i took soundings from
ReplyDeleteThe failure to provide a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty, Cameron's belief in man-made climate-change, the Tory rhetoric about devolving power to the people (but then imposing candidates) - all of these points should be stated repeatedly & UKIP's solutions to each a part of the dialogue.
ReplyDeleteUKIP's climate-change sceptic Christopher Monckton embarked on a successful speaking tour of Australia. When our election gets underway he needs to do the same thing here. Booking halls, making speeches, explaining the con that is man-made global warming to the public & pointing out that UKIP is the only political party that will not have any truck with this nonsense (& if you wanted to strike an even more populist note how about letting the public know that the manufacture & sale of their old lightbulbs will be reintroduced in this country? Now I have no idea if that's possible but if it is I think it's a good thing to go for.)
The importance of a referendum goes without saying but the importance of direct democracy & devolving power strikes me as equally important. Why? Well because the public feel increasingly remote & hostile to those who run the country. We feel that no matter who we vote for nothing is going to change because whoever gets in they just ignore what the public feel & go their own way. For example, I really do want to see the police service reformed. It's long overdue. The current opaque command structure, the wretched & unaccountable ACPO, the arrogant & rude behaviour of serving officers, the succession of aloof & remote Commander's all needs to go & the latter replaced by people voted into the job by those who live in the particular region. If Commanders knew that their job security relied on their being directly responsive to what those in his/her local community actually wanted then you can bet they'd be a bloody sight more reactive lest they be voted out of a job the next time round.
Another thing I would strongly recommend UKIP adopt is something the Tories are considering & it's the removal of funding for The Guardian's advertising section. The Guardian, for reasons I don't pretend to understand, gets the lion's share of Govt adverts for public sector jobs. Now since this is taxpayers money it's reasonable to ask why millions of pounds a year is being wasted advertising Govt jobs in a left-wing newspaper. Especially given that not only are we in a recession with an overwhelming need for spending reductions across Govt but all depts have their own websites on which they advertise vacancies anyway & much less expensively than an ad in The Guardian.
There's just no reason why we should continue to allow The Guardian to fund its relentless assaults against UKIP or any other right of centre grouping on the back of the poor taxpayer. No other national newspaper gets this absurd subsidy. It's frankly outrageous & it's time that it was stopped. By all means let The Guardian do what it wants but it can do so on its own coin, not the taxpayers.
Lord Pearson,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your blog, you have certainly hit a spot with me!
Very interesting Charles Clarke visit to Brussels. However, we should not loose sight of the fact their could be two other reasons for his visit.
1. To fish for EU promises (empty or not) for the Conservative Party to use against their eurosceptics and others at the General election.
2. If in the unlikely event Clarke comes back with nothing, it would shut him up once and for all, which could put the Conservatives on a new path.
I believe we should make a big issue on his return to expose exactly the contents of his trip. I would say this should be a win/win situation for UKIP
Dear Lord,
ReplyDeleteHas the procedure for withdrawal from the EU changed with the enforecemnt of the Lisbon Treaty?
According to the principle of Parliamentary Sovereignty it shouldn't have.
Parliament could simply repeal the European Communities Act.
Nevertheless, Art. 50 of the Treaty on EU prescribes a specific procedure for withdrawal.
It says that the member state must notify the European Council of its wish to wihdraw, and then, after TWO years(!), the withdrawal is effective if no other agreement is found.
Thank you
Britannicus
I want to support UKIP
ReplyDeleteBut you seem to have compromised its principles.
The focus should be on the EU, not Westminster or Islamofascism bashing
UKIP now supports PR? Which is not the British system FPTP, if you wont support the British system, who will???
UKIP is now making BNP-esque statements on the Burqa, i really dont feel this is an important issue either way. As You know it will be the EU that decides anyway if this isnt stopped. But it plays into the hands of those whose only defense against you is to shout racism.
Are you guys just criminal hustlers like the other political parties, defrauding people? I know that one of your founders is an LSE academic and a member of the British American Project for the Successor Generation.
I support Nigel Farage and i want to support UKIP but i dont know anyone who thinks the new UKIP is an improvement.
adam
Its clear that UKIP is the only party that can save this country from the brink. The Left have made no secret in their attempts to destroy Britain, as actions speak louder than words. The worst thing is Cameron going along with it. Cameron is 2 faced he say one thing to the Eurosceptics in the party and another thing to the liberals which have hijacked the Conservative Party.
ReplyDeleteThe only real change is UKIP. Socially under Cameron we will continue to see the same social policies as Labour. Cameron agrees with Labour on Social Issues.
Only UKIP can save Britain. However I do sincerely hope for UKIP that we drop the ugly purple and yellow coloured leaflets. One other point, why not use the Union Jack more prominently in all UKIP literature?
ReplyDeleteAgree with previous post. We need more rigorous opposition to Labour's social policies (gay marriage, single mothers etc) too
Keep sockin' it to 'em. Vote UKIP.