National Democratic Party (UK, 1966)
Encyclopedia
The National Democratic Party (NDP) was a right wing political party
that operated in the United Kingdom
during the 1960s and 1970s. The NDP sought to poisition itself as an early rival to the National Front although ultimately it failed to challenege the position of this group.
and 1966
general elections to contest the Ipswich constituency
, securing 0.6% and 1.3% of the vote in the respective elections. However this NDP had no existence beyond Brown and it was not until 1966 that a process of formalisation as a proper political party took place.
, proposed to form the NDP by merging the RPS with John Bean
's British National Party
. However this did not occur as Bean was put off by Brown insisting that the Greater Britain Movement
should be excluded from any alliance and that Brown should be sole leader of the new party. Following this Brown entered negotiations with A.K. Chesterton about using the League of Empire Loyalists
as the basis for the NDP but this plan was rejected by Chesterton as once again Brown insisted that leadership should lie with him alone. The National Front
, effectively a merger between the BNP, LEL and elements of the RPS under Robin Beauclaire followed soon afterwards, with Brown excluded.
Despite this set back the NDP was establsihed officially in 1966 before the NF although critics, particularly from within the NF, argued that Brown only did so as he could not stand the prospect of serving under A. K. Chesterton
. Amongst the leading members of the party upon formation was Leslie Eric 'Lutz' Vaughan who had been associated with the National Socialist Movement's Spearhead paramilitary wing and Column 88
.
John O'Brien
. Another group to join was the Association of British People, a 200 strong group from Birmingham
that opted for the NDP after turning down the overtures of the National Front's Martin Webster
. This group took the lead in the campaign in the Birmingham Stechford
seat where the party won 3.% of the vote in the 1970 general election
. In the same election the NDP had managed the largest vote share of any far-right group competing in Southampton Itchen, where it won of 21.8% of the votes. Southampton was the seat of the Speaker of the British House of Commons
however and traditionally, re-election of the Speaker is unopposed by other major parties. Dr. Brown, meanwhile, won an improved 3.7% vote share in Ipswich, a seat he continued to contest until his final election in February 1974
. With only 2.5% of the vote secured for its candidate in Leicester North West
, and although the party had attracted some disaffected Conservatives who supported Enoch Powell
, there was a general feeling within the NDP that the election had been disappointing for them.
The party had held informal discussions with the NF about a merger in early 1970, although these came to nothing as the NF fell into upheaval resulting in the removal of Chesterton from the leadership. The issue came back on the agenda with O'Brien as NF leader and certainly the two groups grew closer and the NDP was persuaded to withdraw its proposed candidate from the St Marylebone by-election in 1970
and instead campaign on behalf of the NF's Malcolm Skeggs. A merger was discussed and O'Brien presented such a proposal to the NF Directorate but they refused to endorse the idea. Nonetheless the two groups were able to continue with a closer working relationship and in 1971 leading NDP member Eddie Bray even brought a coachload of party members to Bristol
where they joined an NF march in the city. The relationship was not always beneficial, however, such as when the important Manchester
branch left en bloc, under the direction of organiser Walter Barton, to join the NF after a particularly rousing speech by O'Brien.
In May 1971 Eddie Bray stood as a candidate in the Southampton Itchen by-election
. In the seat whre the party had performed well in the previous general election the NDP once again made a good showing with Bray winning over 7.5% of the vote and finishing ahead of the Liberal Party
candidate.
and Martin Webster
's neo-Nazi links The party tried to carry on but it became less and less significant. The emergence of other outlets for the populist
tendency of the far right
, such as the National Party
, meant that support for the NDP disappeared. Towards the end of its life the NDP attempted to forge links with rightist groups associated with the Conservative Party
such as the Conservative Monday Club
and the Anglo-Rhodesia Society, although the party was gone by the late 1970s. Around this time future Tory MP Piers Merchant
was a member of the party.
The NDP was not connected to the National Democrats
, which was an attempt by the NF to change its name. This resulted in a split in the NF.
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
that operated in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
during the 1960s and 1970s. The NDP sought to poisition itself as an early rival to the National Front although ultimately it failed to challenege the position of this group.
Background
The NDP had existed on paper since the early 1960s as the title was used by Dr David Brown in both the 1964United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
and 1966
United Kingdom general election, 1964
The United Kingdom general election of 1964 was held on 15 October 1964, more than five years after the preceding election, and thirteen years after the Conservative Party had retaken power...
general elections to contest the Ipswich constituency
Ipswich (UK Parliament constituency)
Ipswich is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.- Boundaries :...
, securing 0.6% and 1.3% of the vote in the respective elections. However this NDP had no existence beyond Brown and it was not until 1966 that a process of formalisation as a proper political party took place.
Formation
In 1966, Brown, who was also the chairman of the Racial Preservation SocietyRacial Preservation Society
The Racial Preservation Society was a right-wing pressure group opposed to immigration and in favour of white nationalism, national preservation and protection in the United Kingdom in the 1960s.-Background:...
, proposed to form the NDP by merging the RPS with John Bean
John Bean
John Edward Bean is a long-standing participant in the British far right, who has been active within a number of movements during the course of his life and is the voice behind the BNP election broadcasts.-Early life:...
's British National Party
British National Party (1960s)
The British National Party was a far right political party that operated in the United Kingdom from 1960 to 1967. Led by John Bean the group, which was subject to internal divisions during its brief history, established some areas of local support before helping to form the National Front in...
. However this did not occur as Bean was put off by Brown insisting that the Greater Britain Movement
Greater Britain Movement
The Greater Britain Movement was a British far right political group formed by John Tyndall in 1964 after he split from Colin Jordan's National Socialist Movement...
should be excluded from any alliance and that Brown should be sole leader of the new party. Following this Brown entered negotiations with A.K. Chesterton about using the League of Empire Loyalists
League of Empire Loyalists
The League of Empire Loyalists was a British pressure group , established in 1954, which campaigned against the dissolution of the British Empire. The League was a small group of current or former members of the Conservative Party led by Arthur K...
as the basis for the NDP but this plan was rejected by Chesterton as once again Brown insisted that leadership should lie with him alone. The National Front
British National Front
The National Front is a far right, white-only political party whose major political activities took place during the 1970s and 1980s. Its popularity peaked in the 1979 general election, when it received 191,719 votes ....
, effectively a merger between the BNP, LEL and elements of the RPS under Robin Beauclaire followed soon afterwards, with Brown excluded.
Despite this set back the NDP was establsihed officially in 1966 before the NF although critics, particularly from within the NF, argued that Brown only did so as he could not stand the prospect of serving under A. K. Chesterton
A. K. Chesterton
Arthur Kenneth Chesterton MC was a far right-wing politician and journalist who helped found right-wing organisations in Britain, primarily in opposition to the break-up of the British Empire, and later adopting a broader anti-immigration stance. His cousin, the author G. K...
. Amongst the leading members of the party upon formation was Leslie Eric 'Lutz' Vaughan who had been associated with the National Socialist Movement's Spearhead paramilitary wing and Column 88
Column 88
Column 88 was a neo-nazi paramilitary organization based in the United Kingdom. It was formed in the early 1970s, and disbanded in the early 1980s. The members of Column 88 undertook military training under the supervision of a former Royal Marine Commando, and also held regular gatherings attended...
.
1970 election
In its early years, the Party expanded through mergers with a number of smaller movements, including the British Defence League, a small group based around ex-ToryConservative 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...
John O'Brien
John O'Brien (UK politician)
John O'Brien was a leading figure on the far right of British politics during the early 1970s.A fruit farmer by trade, O'Brien had initially been a member of the Conservative Party in Shrewsbury. A supporter of Enoch Powell, he attempted to organise a 'Powell for Premier' movement following the...
. Another group to join was the Association of British People, a 200 strong group from Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
that opted for the NDP after turning down the overtures of the National Front's Martin Webster
Martin Webster
Martin Guy Alan Webster is a former leading figure on the far-right in British politics.-Early political activism:An early member of the Young Conservatives, from which he claimed to have been expelled, Webster was associated loosely with the League of Empire Loyalists until he joined the National...
. This group took the lead in the campaign in the Birmingham Stechford
Birmingham Stechford (UK Parliament constituency)
Birmingham Stechford was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Stechford district of the city of Birmingham. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system.The constituency was created...
seat where the party won 3.% of the vote in the 1970 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1970
The United Kingdom general election of 1970 was held on 18 June 1970, and resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, who defeated the Labour Party under Harold Wilson. The election also saw the Liberal Party and its new leader Jeremy Thorpe lose half their...
. In the same election the NDP had managed the largest vote share of any far-right group competing in Southampton Itchen, where it won of 21.8% of the votes. Southampton was the seat of the Speaker of the British House of Commons
Speaker of the British House of Commons
The Speaker of the House of Commons is the presiding officer of the House of Commons, the United Kingdom's lower chamber of Parliament. The current Speaker is John Bercow, who was elected on 22 June 2009, following the resignation of Michael Martin...
however and traditionally, re-election of the Speaker is unopposed by other major parties. Dr. Brown, meanwhile, won an improved 3.7% vote share in Ipswich, a seat he continued to contest until his final election in February 1974
United Kingdom general election, February 1974
The United Kingdom's general election of February 1974 was held on the 28th of that month. It was the first of two United Kingdom general elections held that year, and the first election since the Second World War not to produce an overall majority in the House of Commons for the winning party,...
. With only 2.5% of the vote secured for its candidate in Leicester North West
Leicester North West (UK Parliament constituency)
Leicester North West was a borough constituency in the city of Leicester. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
, and although the party had attracted some disaffected Conservatives who supported Enoch Powell
Enoch Powell
John Enoch Powell, MBE was a British politician, classical scholar, poet, writer, and soldier. He served as a Conservative Party MP and Minister of Health . He attained most prominence in 1968, when he made the controversial Rivers of Blood speech in opposition to mass immigration from...
, there was a general feeling within the NDP that the election had been disappointing for them.
Relationship with NF
O'Brien had already left the NDP to join the NF before the election, although he maintained close links with Anthony Baron, whose East Anglia Forum was affiliated to the NDP. Chesterton had long hoped to merge the NF with the NDP, a party that he believed contained less of a loutish element than his own NF, and he felt that O'Brien's appointment as NF chairman would hasten this aim due to O'Brien's good standing with NDP activists.The party had held informal discussions with the NF about a merger in early 1970, although these came to nothing as the NF fell into upheaval resulting in the removal of Chesterton from the leadership. The issue came back on the agenda with O'Brien as NF leader and certainly the two groups grew closer and the NDP was persuaded to withdraw its proposed candidate from the St Marylebone by-election in 1970
St Marylebone by-election, 1970
The St Marylebone by-election of 22 October 1970 was held after Conservative Member of Parliament Quintin Hogg became a life peer. The seat was retained by the Conservatives.-Results:...
and instead campaign on behalf of the NF's Malcolm Skeggs. A merger was discussed and O'Brien presented such a proposal to the NF Directorate but they refused to endorse the idea. Nonetheless the two groups were able to continue with a closer working relationship and in 1971 leading NDP member Eddie Bray even brought a coachload of party members to Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
where they joined an NF march in the city. The relationship was not always beneficial, however, such as when the important Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
branch left en bloc, under the direction of organiser Walter Barton, to join the NF after a particularly rousing speech by O'Brien.
In May 1971 Eddie Bray stood as a candidate in the Southampton Itchen by-election
Southampton Itchen by-election, 1971
The Southampton Itchen by-election of 27 May 1971 was held after the Speaker of the British House of Commons and Member of Parliament Horace King retired. The seat was gained by the Labour Party...
. In the seat whre the party had performed well in the previous general election the NDP once again made a good showing with Bray winning over 7.5% of the vote and finishing ahead of the Liberal Party
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
candidate.
Final years
The NDP was weakened when O'Brien left the NF and joined the National Independence Party rather than bringing his followers back to the NDP. O'Brien left the NF because of John TyndallJohn Tyndall (politician)
John Hutchyns Tyndall was a British politician who was prominently associated with several fascist/neo-Nazi sects. However, he is best known for leading the National Front in the 1970s and founding the contemporary British National Party in 1982.The most prominent figure in British nationalism...
and Martin Webster
Martin Webster
Martin Guy Alan Webster is a former leading figure on the far-right in British politics.-Early political activism:An early member of the Young Conservatives, from which he claimed to have been expelled, Webster was associated loosely with the League of Empire Loyalists until he joined the National...
's neo-Nazi links The party tried to carry on but it became less and less significant. The emergence of other outlets for the populist
Populism
Populism can be defined as an ideology, political philosophy, or type of discourse. Generally, a common theme compares "the people" against "the elite", and urges social and political system changes. It can also be defined as a rhetorical style employed by members of various political or social...
tendency of the far right
Far right
Far-right, extreme right, hard right, radical right, and ultra-right are terms used to discuss the qualitative or quantitative position a group or person occupies within right-wing politics. Far-right politics may involve anti-immigration and anti-integration stances towards groups that are...
, such as the National Party
National Party (UK, 1976)
The National Party was a short-lived British far right political party formed on 6 January 1976 and which dissolved before the 1979 general election...
, meant that support for the NDP disappeared. Towards the end of its life the NDP attempted to forge links with rightist groups associated with 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...
such as the Conservative Monday Club
Conservative Monday Club
The Conservative Monday Club is a British pressure group "on the right-wing" of the Conservative Party.-Overview:...
and the Anglo-Rhodesia Society, although the party was gone by the late 1970s. Around this time future Tory MP Piers Merchant
Piers Merchant
Piers Rolf Garfield Merchant was a British Conservative Party politician. He was the Member of Parliament for Newcastle upon Tyne Central from 1983 to 1987, and then MP for Beckenham from 1992 until he resigned in October 1997 following a scandal.- Education :He was educated at Nottingham High...
was a member of the party.
The NDP was not connected to the National Democrats
National Democrats (UK)
By the beginning of 2002 the party had ceased political activity. It continued as a pressure group under the name Campaign for National Democracy until 2008; the party officially ceased to exist after the death of its leader at the beginning of 2011....
, which was an attempt by the NF to change its name. This resulted in a split in the NF.