Craig Mackinlay is a British

British people

The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...

 Eurosceptic

EuroSceptic

EuroSceptic is the second album of British singer Jack Lucien. It was released in October 2009.Due to being an album influenced by Europop, it features songs with parts in different languages...

 politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

.

Mackinlay grew up in Rainham, Kent, and studied at the University of Birmingham

University of Birmingham

The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...

. A chartered accountant

Chartered Accountant

Chartered Accountants were the first accountants to form a professional body, initially established in Britain in 1854. The Edinburgh Society of Accountants , the Glasgow Institute of Accountants and Actuaries and the Aberdeen Society of Accountants were each granted a royal charter almost from...

 by profession, first became opposed to British membership of the European Union

European Union

The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...

 when Britain dropped out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism

European Exchange Rate Mechanism

The European Exchange Rate Mechanism, ERM, was a system introduced by the European Community in March 1979, as part of the European Monetary System , to reduce exchange rate variability and achieve monetary stability in Europe, in preparation for Economic and Monetary Union and the introduction of...

. After hearing Alan Sked

Alan Sked

Alan Sked is Professor of International History at the London School of Economics . He studied History at Glasgow, then Merton College, Oxford. His doctoral supervisor at Oxford was A. J. P. Taylor, who was a major influence on Sked. In particular, Sked's writings on the Habsburg Monarchy owe much...

, a lecturer at the London School of Economics

London School of Economics

The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...

, speaking on the issue, he made contact. At the 1992 general election

United Kingdom general election, 1992

The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...

, he stood in Gillingham

Gillingham (UK Parliament constituency)

Gillingham was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Boundaries:...

 as an independent

Independent (politician)

In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...

 in support of Sked's Anti-Federalist League

Anti-Federalist League

The Anti-Federalist League was a small cross-party organisation in Britain, formed in 1991 to campaign against the Maastricht Treaty. It is mainly remembered now as the forerunner of the United Kingdom Independence Party....

, taking 248 votes.

When the Anti-Federalist League became the United Kingdom Independence Party

United Kingdom Independence Party

The United Kingdom Independence Party is a eurosceptic and right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. Whilst its primary goal is the UK's withdrawal from the European Union, the party has expanded beyond its single-issue image to develop a more comprehensive party platform.UKIP...

 (UKIP), Mackinlay became Treasurer and Vice-Chairman. He stood again in Gillingham at the 1997 general election

United Kingdom general election, 1997

The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...

, taking 590 votes.

In July 1997, Sked resigned the leadership of UKIP, and named Mackinlay as his successor. Mackinlay decided that the only way to keep the party going was to rework its constitution and hold a leadership election. Mackinlay stood in the election against Michael Holmes

Michael Holmes

Michael Holmes is an Australian anchor and correspondent for CNN International. He attended Wesley College, Perth from 1973-77. Holmes began his career at the Daily News newspaper in Perth. Prior to his work at CNN, he was a reporter for more than a decade for Australia's Nine Network in Perth,...

 and Gerald Roberts. Holmes, with the backing of Nigel Farage

Nigel Farage

Nigel Paul Farage MEP , a position he previously held from September 2006 to November 2009. He is a current Member of the European Parliament for South East England and co-chairs the Eurosceptic Europe of Freedom and Democracy group....

, easily won, and appointed Mackinlay as deputy leader.

After the European Parliament election in 1999, Holmes dismissed Mackinlay and party secretary Tony Scholefield at an NEC meeting, which led to an immediate vote of no confidence in Holmes, who agreed to resign the following month. After extensive wrangling, Jeffrey Titford

Jeffrey Titford

Jeffrey William Titford is a British politician who served as leader of the UK Independence Party from 2000 until 2002. He served again as interim leader in September to November 2010 following the resignation of Lord Pearson of Rannoch...

 was elected as the new party leader, and Mackinlay stepped down as deputy, but remained on the NEC.

Mackinlay remained active in UKIP, standing in Totnes

Totnes (UK Parliament constituency)

Totnes is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament , using the first-past-the-post voting system....

 at the 2001 general election

United Kingdom general election, 2001

The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...

, at which he took 6.1% of the votes cast, then back in Gillingham in 2005

United Kingdom general election, 2005

The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....

, where he took 2.6%. He also stood in the 1994, 1999 and 2004 European elections.

In July 2005, Mackinlay resigned from UKIP and joined the Conservative Party

Conservative Party (UK)

The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...

. He was subsequently elected as a councillor on Medway Borough Council.