United Kingdom Independence Party
Encyclopedia
The United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP, icon ) 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 holds 11 seats in the European Parliament
(down from 13 won due to defections) and two in the House of Lords
(both due to defections from Conservative
peers). Due to the use of the first-past-the-post
system in the United Kingdom, UKIP has never won a seat in the House of Commons.
The leader of UKIP, Nigel Farage, was re-elected on 5 November 2010, having previously served as leader from 2006 to 2009. Nigel Farage has been a UKIP MEP since 1999 and is also one of the founding members of the party after leaving the Conservative Party
in 1992.
In the 2009 election to the European Parliament
, UKIP attained 13 seats with 16.5% of the vote, coming second behind the Conservative Party, and over-taking the Labour Party
in terms of votes, drawing in terms of seats. In the 2010 general election, the party polled 3.1% of the vote, an increase of 0.9% from the 2005 general election
. In the 2011 local elections
, UKIP took control of Ramsey
town council, as well as maintaining its seven councillors across England
, and one in Northern Ireland
.
and other members of the all-party Anti-Federalist League
- a political party set up in November 1991 with the aim of fielding candidates opposed to the Maastricht Treaty
.
Its primary objective was withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union. The new party attracted some members of the Eurosceptic wing of the Conservative Party, which was split on the European question after the pound
was forced out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism
in 1992 and the struggle over ratification of the Maastricht Treaty
. UKIP candidates stood in the 1997 general election
, but were overshadowed by James Goldsmith
's Referendum Party
.
After the election, Sked resigned the leadership and left the party because he felt "they are racist and have been infected by the far-right" and "doomed to remain on the political fringes". However, Goldsmith died soon after the election and the Referendum Party was dissolved, with a resulting influx of new UKIP supporters. The leadership election was won by millionaire businessman Michael Holmes
, and in the 1999 elections to the European Parliament UKIP gained three seats and 7% of the vote. In that election, Nigel Farage
(South East England
), Jeffrey Titford
(East of England
), and Michael Holmes (South West England
) were elected.
Over the following months there was a power struggle between the leader, Michael Holmes, and the party's National Executive Committee (NEC). This was partly due to Holmes making a speech perceived as calling for greater powers for the European Parliament against the European Commission
. Ordinary party members forced the resignation of both Holmes and the entire NEC and Jeffrey Titford was subsequently elected leader. Holmes resigned from the party itself in March 2000. There was a legal battle when he tried to continue as an independent MEP until resigning from the European Parliament in December 2002, when he was replaced by Graham Booth
, the second candidate on the UKIP list in South West England.
UKIP put up candidates in more than 420 seats in the 2001 general election
, attaining 1.5% of the vote and failing to win any representation at Westminster. It also failed to break through in the elections to the Scottish Parliament
or the Welsh Assembly, despite those elections being held under proportional representation
. In 2002 Titford stood down as party leader, but continued to sit as a UKIP MEP. He was replaced as leader by Roger Knapman
.
of the same year also showed that UKIP had won two London Assembly Members.
In late 2004, reports in the mainstream UK press speculated on if or when former Labour Party
MP and chat-show host Robert Kilroy-Silk
would take control of the party. These reports were heightened by Kilroy-Silk's speech at the UKIP party conference in Bristol on 2 October 2004, in which he called for the Conservative Party
to be "killed off" (following UKIP's forcing the Conservatives into fourth place in Hartlepool
).
Interviewed by Channel 4
television, Kilroy-Silk did not deny having ambitions to lead the party, but stressed that Roger Knapman would lead it into the next general election. However, the next day, on Breakfast with Frost
, he criticised Knapman's leadership. After further disagreement with the leadership Kilroy-Silk resigned the UKIP whip in the European Parliament on 27 October 2004. Initially he remained a member, while seeking a bid for the party leadership. However, this was not successful, and Kilroy-Silk resigned completely from UKIP on 20 January 2005, calling it a "joke". Two weeks later, he founded his own party, Veritas
, taking several UKIP members, including both London Assembly members, with him.
UKIP had hoped to sustain its momentum in the 2005 General Election, but despite fielding 495 candidates, the party failed to achieve a breakthrough as they had in the European elections a year before. UKIP gained 618,000 votes, or 2.3% of the total votes cast in the election (an increase of 220,000 votes / 0.8% from their result in the 2001 general election). This placed them fourth in terms of total votes cast, behind the Liberal Democrats
and ahead of the Scottish National Party
. However the party again failed to win any seats at Westminster. 45 UKIP candidates saved their deposits, up from only six in 2001. Their best performance was in Boston & Skegness, where their candidate Richard Horsnell came 3rd with 9.6% of the vote. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/77.stm
Following the 2005 general election, Kilroy-Silk subsequently resigned from Veritas after its terrible performance in the election, harnessing only 40,000 votes.
donated £100,000 to UKIP after criticising David Cameron
's stance towards the Lisbon treaty and the European Union. He said, "if they kick me out I will understand. I will be very sorry about it, but it won't alter my stance." The following day, 29 March, he was expelled from the Conservative Party.
On 15 May 2009, a YouGov poll conducted for The Sun newspaper showed UKIP as having 15% of the vote for the impending European Elections, only 5% behind the Labour Party. The surge in support was accredited by The Sun to public despair stemming from the MPs' expenses crisis.
Although the current make-up of UKIP MEPs is different due to the defection of David Campbell-Bannerman and Nikki Sinclaire's departure from the party, the regional breakdown of the vote was as follows:
announced that he would be resigning as Leader of the party in order to stand against Speaker John Bercow
— an imperfectly observed convention states that the main parties do not normally nominate candidates against an incumbent Speaker. Malcolm Pearson, Baron Pearson of Rannoch
, Gerard Batten
, Nikki Sinclaire
, Mike Nattrass
and Alan Wood stood for election, with Pearson winning.
UKIP fielded 572 candidates in the 2010 general election, with their main target being Buckingham
. UKIP aimed for a hung parliament in which they hoped the Liberal Democrats would drive through proportional representation
as a key demand to form a coalition government. Lord Pearson demanded that some candidates stand down in favour of eurosceptic Conservatives and Labour MPs, however, some refused to do so. This did not stop Lord Pearson from campaigning on behalf of the Conservative candidates citing that he was 'putting country before party'. These decisions drew some criticism from within the party from the likes of Michael Heaver of Young Independence, among others.
On the morning of polling day, Nigel Farage was injured when a light aircraft he was a passenger in crashed near Brackley
, Northamptonshire
.
In the election itself the party polled 3.1% of the vote (919,471 votes), but took no seats. This made it the party with the largest percentage of the popular vote to win no seats in the election (In a fully proportional system, 3.1% of 649 seats would be just over 20 seats).
In UKIP's key target, despite Lord Tebbit and numerous senior Conservatives voicing support for Farage and a Conservative Home online survey put Farage on 64% and Bercow on 25%, Nigel Farage obtained just 17.4% of the vote in Buckingham - placing him third behind Bercow and independent John Stevens
(Buckinghamshire Campaign for Democracy)- who had previously resigned from the Conservatives to found the Pro-Euro Conservative Party
. UKIP also achieved third place in three other constituencies: North Cornwall
, North Devon
and Torridge and West Devon. Farage's result was the best in all constituencies contested in that election. The constituency of Boston and Skegness
also achieved a large percentage of vote, being the second best by terms of percentage.
UKIP lost five sitting councillors in the UK local elections in May 2010. The only one of those to have been previously elected as a UKIP councillor was Steve Allison in Hartlepool
.
, David Bannerman, and Winston McKenzie
with more than 60% of the vote. During his acceptance speech, he spoke out against the Coalition government, saying that the Conservative Party's policy on Europe can be summed up as: "Surrender, surrender, surrender."
Lord Pearson welcomed Nigel Farage's re-election, saying: "The UKIP crown returns to it rightful owner."
, who once gave £5 million to the Conservatives, has also joined as the Party Treasurer.
In two by-election
s in early 2011, UKIP fared better than predicted, with candidate Jane Collins coming second in a by-election for Barnsley Central. UKIP polled a higher vote than the combination of votes for the ruling coalition parties. Nigel Farage welcomed Jane Collins' success and said that UKIP should now aim to replace the Liberal Democrats as the third largest party, saying: "The Lib Dems are no longer the voice of opposition in British Politics - we are. Between now and the next general election our aim is to replace them as the third party in British politics."
UKIP fielded 1,217 candidates for the local council elections, a major increase since its previous campaigns but not enough to be able to have a party election broadcast on television. UKIP said that the party is well-organised in the South East, South West and Eastern regions but there are still places across the country where there are no UKIP candidates standing at all. There were many candidates from Young Independence, the Youth area of UKIP such as the Young Independence former and current chairmen, Michael Heaver and Harry Aldridge.
Although no Young Independence candidates were elected, many significantly increases their vote totals. For example, a candidate in Thurrock came within 98 votes of winning the council seat and making a gain from the Conservative party. Across the country, many UKIP candidates, whether from Young Independence or not either came second or third place, candidate Nathan Brittain of Newcastle-Under-Lyme
came second place with 31% of the vote. UKIP had done very well in Newcastle-under-Lyme
gaining a total of five seats on Newcastle Borough Council in 2007 and 2008 and three seats on Staffordshire
County Council in 2009. UKIP were defending three seats at the 2011 local elections and lost all of them to Labour, by mediocre majorities. Although UKIP did not poll well, it made gains across many parts of England, gaining two new councillors in Aylesbury Vale
, one councillor in Tunbridge Wells and another in Wycombe as well as taking control of Ramsey town council with nine UKIP councillors out of the 17. The Chairman of Young Independence, Harry Aldridge, was enthusiastic about the results, saying: “What we have seen in these elections is a raft of enthusiastic first time candidates from YI, from whom we have got some very encouraging results.” Whilst UKIP made gains and losses, the party fell short of Farage's predictions of major gains. However, UKIP candidates came second in many wards. The UKIP MEP Marta Andreasen
called for Farage's resignation as leader of the party.
In the Welsh, Scottish Northern Irish elections, UKIP increased its share of the vote in all areas, retaining its sole Northern Irish councillor but failed to gain Welsh Assembly members which the media had speculated UKIP and the Green Party could have achieved. The party earned 4.6% (an increase of 0.7%) of the vote on the regional list, more than half of the Liberal Democrats share and comfortably higher than the Greens. In Northern Ireland, UKIP more than doubled its share of the vote but did not gain any seats. The same occurred in Scotland with UKIP more than doubling its share of the vote but failing to gain any seats.
On July 7, UKIP came in front of the Liberal Democrats in two local government by-elections, both in wards in which UKIP had never contested before. Farage used these results to reaffirm his commitment to replacing the Liberal Democrats.
On 5 September, a few days before UKIP's annual conference, the party chose Lawrence Webb as its mayoral candidate for the 2012 London mayoral election
with a 42% share of the vote. The other candidates were David Coburn, Paul Oakly, Winston McKenzie
(who had previously stood for the leadership of UKIP), Michael McGough and Michael Corby.
On the day before UKIP's annual conference, the party came second in an Essex County Council by-election, beating the Labour and Liberal Democrat share of the vote put together, reducing the Conservative's majority substantially.
A day after UKIP's September conference in Eastbourne
, Nigel Farage (on Twitter
) reported that two Conservative councillors from Rushmoor Borough Council who had attended the conference had defected to UKIP over the government's actions on the Armed Forces and the refusal for a referendum on the European Union. On 10 October, Lord Hesketh defected from the Conservatives to UKIP, something that Nigel Farage and the UKIP leadership welcomed with open-arms and called the most high-profile Conservative defection to date. In an article by the Daily Mail, he says that he believes that the EU has 'betrayed the country's working people' and that he will be an active member of UKIP.
In a Meopham North by-election
, UKIP came off second, tallying more than 34 per cent of the overall vote.. In early November, UKIP regained principal authority representation in the North East of England due to the defection of a South Tyneside
councillor.
Coverage of UKIP's activities in the mainstream media
in 2011 was comparatively small, with the exception of the Daily Express
newspaper which has had several spokesmen from the party quoted in its pages.
During 2011, UKIP spokespeople had some success in appearing in other media channels including television channel Russia Today
and on the Alex Jones
show.
values'. Malcolm Pearson, on becoming leader, built upon Farage's policy review, his fundamental propositions being the introduction of Swiss style
referendums and direct democracy
at local and national levels, and the opposition to Islamic fundamentalism
.
UKIP has subsequently produced detailed policy documents on taxation and education.
and national insurance
into a single flat tax
at 31 per cent, which it claims would take 4.5 million lower-paid workers out of the income tax system completely. UKIP also proposes cuts in corporation taxes
and the abolition of inheritance taxes. On the subject of business and enterprise, UKIP proposes to establish 'Production Enterprise Centres' to assist companies in research, design, prototyping and marketing. This would mean that small and medium-sized enterprises would be provided with skills to enter into markets without being shunned, and thus businesses failing to survive.
On the issue of the national debt
, UKIP admits that there should be cuts in government services but ones of front line status should still thrive and be able. UKIP also believes that things such as administration and politicians salaries should be at the top of the list for government cuts instead of services. The party also believes that some sere there is substantial waste and inefficiency that can be eliminated while vital front-line services remain fully protected. UKIP also aims to reduce the public sector size to what it was in 1997, making cuts into unnecessary and taxpayer-costly jobs and to also create one million skilled jobs in manufacturing in exchange for public sector jobs. Finally, the party believes profligate government spending is killing off the productive activity that provides tax funds, and that easing the burden will be the route to revitalising the economy.
The party also advocates closer economic ties with the Commonwealth of Nations
.
with its powers to be transferred to school governing bodies with a new independent Educational Inspectorate made up of experienced teachers. Another education policy is to allow schools a greater say over what they can teach although key subjects will be retained.
UKIP has condemned the Badman Review
, which recommends greater regulation of home educators in England, and it supports home education as a parental choice.
, UKIP aims to create a single, clear objective or look to negotiate a withdrawal from the area. The party is also committed to NATO and is fully against the creation of a European Army: Eurocorps
. UKIP also agrees that defence spending should be increased; the party believes that the structure of the Ministry of Defence
is bureaucratic and wasteful. UKIP plans to cut bureaucracy and waste but increase spending in the Armed Forces and improve equipment. UKIP also pledges to:
UKIP asserts that it believes in civic nationalism
. UKIP "opposes multiculturalism
and political correctness
but rejects "blood and soil" ethnic nationalism
. UKIP promotes uni-culturalism, a single British culture embracing all races, religions and colours". It states that Britishness
can be defined in terms of belief in democracy, fair play and freedom.
UKIP would replace the May Day
bank holiday
in England with a St George's Day
bank holiday. It would introduce an English Parliament
and end the Barnett formula
.
UKIP has stated that it will "enthusiastically support teaching Gaelic languages and histories in England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and Cornwall, and support local and area heritage across the UK."
UKIP opposes the takeover of major British companies, such as the takeover of Cadbury's by Kraft Foods
in 2010, and would create a new parliamentary committee that would be given powers to block the sale or merger of companies and to attach conditions, including requiring a UK Government “Golden Share”.
All media, businesses, schools and colleges would be required to use imperial measurements alongside metric
measurements.
and increasing Islamophobic
elements in UKIP's strategy. They showed that the discourse of the Independence Party on immigration and national identity is similar to the one of British National Party
(BNP), with the former's being gradually more moderate.
UKIP states that some 2.5 million immigrants have arrived since 1997 and up to one million economic migrants live in the UK illegally. UKIP asserts that "former New Labour staff maintain that this policy has been a deliberate attempt to water down the British identity and buy votes. EU and human rights legislation means we cannot even expel foreign criminals if they come from another EU country. This is why immigration control is so essential and overdue." UKIP will:
each constituency (normally 5 per cent) signs a petition demanding a referendum on any major issue
which is of concern to them, it shall be granted a referendum within three months for local petitions and six months for national petitions.
for reasons of energy security. UKIP is sceptical
of anthropogenic global warming, and suggests instead that the current warming is similar to that of previous geological cycles, and calls for further evidence provided by a Royal Commission before it will accept that it is manmade. It does not believe large-scale cuts of carbon emissions are necessary, arguing that technological innovation is already moving towards decarbonisation, and also argues that plans to invest in wind power
are uneconomic.
UKIP would look at the present system of import control to find out how it can be strengthened using expert opinion. UKIP state that they will rely on British veterinary and scientific advice in the event of any disease outbreaks including Foot-and-Mouth Disease
and Bovine TB.
. Concern for civil liberties also led UKIP to oppose the Civil Contingencies Act 2004
, which gives additional powers to the UK Home Secretary
in broadly defined "emergency situations". UKIP's Jeffrey Titford MEP
condemned the bill as "totalitarian".
They would restore the county as a key government with unitaries only where local people prefer them.
UKIP would use city-wide authorities to provide continuity and strategic direction, with counties cooperating on area-wide strategies, where necessary. However, area-wide co-operation across large scale planning, transport and development will be encouraged.
(EDD).
In 2004, 37 MEP
s from the UK, Poland
, Denmark
and Sweden
founded a new European Parliamentary group called Independence and Democracy
from the old Europe of Democracies and Diversities
group. However, following the European Parliament election, 2009
, where Eurosceptic parties from Denmark, Sweden and elsewhere lost all representation, the ID group was dissolved.
UKIP has since formed a new right-wing grouping called Europe of Freedom and Democracy
(EFD) comprising nationalist, Eurosceptic, conservative, and other political factions. This group is more right wing than the older Independence and Democracy grouping.
, Cambridgeshire. Before the election of 2011, the party only had one seat in the town council. On 12 May, UKIP councillor Lisa Duffy was elected as Mayor. The UKIP group leader for Huntingdonshire District Council said that the town council under UKIP will "be standing up for volunteers and the third sector and will be making grants to them to help the big society develop." The Daily Mail has claimed that UKIP "has made political history after taking control of its first council in the UK".
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...
and right-wing populist
Right-wing populism
Right-wing populism is a political ideology that rejects existing political consensus and combines laissez-faire liberalism and anti-elitism. It is considered "right-wing" because of its rejection of social equality and government programs to achieve it, its opposition to social integration, and...
political party
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...
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...
. 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
Party platform
A party platform, or platform sometimes also referred to as a manifesto, is a list of the actions which a political party, individual candidate, or other organization supports in order to appeal to the general public for the purpose of having said peoples' candidates voted into political office or...
.
UKIP holds 11 seats in the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
(down from 13 won due to defections) and two in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
(both due to defections from Conservative
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...
peers). Due to the use of the first-past-the-post
First-past-the-post
First-past-the-post voting refers to an election won by the candidate with the most votes. The winning potato candidate does not necessarily receive an absolute majority of all votes cast.-Overview:...
system in the United Kingdom, UKIP has never won a seat in the House of Commons.
The leader of UKIP, Nigel Farage, was re-elected on 5 November 2010, having previously served as leader from 2006 to 2009. Nigel Farage has been a UKIP MEP since 1999 and is also one of the founding members of the party after leaving 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...
in 1992.
In the 2009 election to the European Parliament
European Parliament election, 2009 (United Kingdom)
The European Parliament election was the United Kingdom's component of the 2009 European Parliament election, the voting for which was held on Thursday 4 June 2009, coinciding with the 2009 local elections in England. Most of the results of the election were announced on Sunday 7 June, after...
, UKIP attained 13 seats with 16.5% of the vote, coming second behind the Conservative Party, and over-taking the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
in terms of votes, drawing in terms of seats. In the 2010 general election, the party polled 3.1% of the vote, an increase of 0.9% from the 2005 general election
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....
. In the 2011 local elections
United Kingdom local elections, 2011
The 2011 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 5 May 2011. In England, direct elections were held in all 36 Metropolitan boroughs, 194 Second-tier district authorities, 49 unitary authorities and various mayoral posts, meaning local elections took place in all parts of England with...
, UKIP took control of Ramsey
Ramsey, Cambridgeshire
Ramsey is a small Cambridgeshire market town and parish, north of Huntingdon and St Ives. For local government purposes it lies in the district of Huntingdonshire within the local government county of Cambridgeshire....
town council, as well as maintaining its seven councillors across England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and one in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
.
Founding and early years
UKIP was founded in 1993 by Alan SkedAlan 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...
and other members of the all-party 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....
- a political party set up in November 1991 with the aim of fielding candidates opposed to the Maastricht Treaty
Maastricht Treaty
The Maastricht Treaty was signed on 7 February 1992 by the members of the European Community in Maastricht, Netherlands. On 9–10 December 1991, the same city hosted the European Council which drafted the treaty...
.
Its primary objective was withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union. The new party attracted some members of the Eurosceptic wing of the Conservative Party, which was split on the European question after the pound
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
was forced 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...
in 1992 and the struggle over ratification of the Maastricht Treaty
Maastricht Treaty
The Maastricht Treaty was signed on 7 February 1992 by the members of the European Community in Maastricht, Netherlands. On 9–10 December 1991, the same city hosted the European Council which drafted the treaty...
. UKIP candidates stood in 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...
, but were overshadowed by James Goldsmith
James Goldsmith
Sir James Michael "Jimmy" Goldsmith was an Anglo-French billionaire financier and tycoon. Towards the end of his life, he became a magazine publisher and a politician. In 1994, he was elected to represent France as a Member of the European Parliament and he subsequently founded the short-lived...
's Referendum Party
Referendum Party
The Referendum Party was a Euro-sceptic, single issue party in the United Kingdom formed by Sir James Goldsmith to fight the 1997 General Election. The party called for a referendum on aspects of the UK's relationship with the European Union.-Policy:...
.
After the election, Sked resigned the leadership and left the party because he felt "they are racist and have been infected by the far-right" and "doomed to remain on the political fringes". However, Goldsmith died soon after the election and the Referendum Party was dissolved, with a resulting influx of new UKIP supporters. The leadership election was won by millionaire businessman Michael Holmes
Michael Holmes (politician)
Michael Holmes is a former leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party and MEP for South West England.Holmes was elected leader of UKIP in 1997. In 1999 he and two other UKIP candidates were elected to the European Parliament. The following year, he stepped down from the leadership as a result...
, and in the 1999 elections to the European Parliament UKIP gained three seats and 7% of the vote. In that election, 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....
(South East England
South East England (European Parliament constituency)
South East England is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 10 Members of the European Parliament using the D'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :...
), 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...
(East of England
East of England (European Parliament constituency)
East of England is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 7 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :...
), and Michael Holmes (South West England
South West England (European Parliament constituency)
South West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation, reduced from 7 in 2004.-Boundaries:...
) were elected.
Over the following months there was a power struggle between the leader, Michael Holmes, and the party's National Executive Committee (NEC). This was partly due to Holmes making a speech perceived as calling for greater powers for the European Parliament against the European Commission
European Commission
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
. Ordinary party members forced the resignation of both Holmes and the entire NEC and Jeffrey Titford was subsequently elected leader. Holmes resigned from the party itself in March 2000. There was a legal battle when he tried to continue as an independent MEP until resigning from the European Parliament in December 2002, when he was replaced by Graham Booth
Graham Booth
Graham H. Booth is an English politician, and was a Member of the European Parliament for South West England between 2002 and 2008. He is a member of the United Kingdom Independence Party...
, the second candidate on the UKIP list in South West England.
UKIP put up candidates in more than 420 seats in 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...
, attaining 1.5% of the vote and failing to win any representation at Westminster. It also failed to break through in the elections to the Scottish Parliament
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
or the Welsh Assembly, despite those elections being held under proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
. In 2002 Titford stood down as party leader, but continued to sit as a UKIP MEP. He was replaced as leader by Roger Knapman
Roger Knapman
Roger Maurice Knapman is a British politician and the former leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party ....
.
Kilroy Silk & UKIP under Knapman
The European Elections of 2004 proved to be UKIP's first major electoral victory, coming third place and winning 12 MEPs. The London Assembly electionsLondon Assembly election, 2004
An election to the Assembly of London took place on 10 June 2004, along with the London mayoral election, 2004.The Assembly is elected by the Additional Member System. There are fourteen directly elected constituencies, nine of which were won by the Conservatives and five by the Labour Party...
of the same year also showed that UKIP had won two London Assembly Members.
In late 2004, reports in the mainstream UK press speculated on if or when former Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
MP and chat-show host Robert Kilroy-Silk
Robert Kilroy-Silk
Robert Michael Kilroy-Silk is an English former politician, former independent Member of the European Parliament, and former television presenter, best known for his daytime talk show Kilroy. He has been a university lecturer and Labour Party Member of Parliament...
would take control of the party. These reports were heightened by Kilroy-Silk's speech at the UKIP party conference in Bristol on 2 October 2004, in which he called for 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...
to be "killed off" (following UKIP's forcing the Conservatives into fourth place in Hartlepool
Hartlepool by-election, 2004
On 23 July 2004, the Member of Parliament for Hartlepool, in England, Peter Mandelson , was nominated as the United Kingdom's new European Commissioner. On 8 September he accepted the office of Steward of the Manor of Northstead, thereby disqualifying himself from Parliament and causing a by-election...
).
Interviewed by Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
television, Kilroy-Silk did not deny having ambitions to lead the party, but stressed that Roger Knapman would lead it into the next general election. However, the next day, on Breakfast with Frost
David Frost (broadcaster)
Sir David Paradine Frost, OBE is a British journalist, comedian, writer, media personality and daytime TV game show host best known for his two decades as host of Through the Keyhole and serious interviews with various political figures, the most notable being Richard Nixon...
, he criticised Knapman's leadership. After further disagreement with the leadership Kilroy-Silk resigned the UKIP whip in the European Parliament on 27 October 2004. Initially he remained a member, while seeking a bid for the party leadership. However, this was not successful, and Kilroy-Silk resigned completely from UKIP on 20 January 2005, calling it a "joke". Two weeks later, he founded his own party, Veritas
Veritas (political party)
Veritas is a political party in the United Kingdom, formed in February 2005 at Hinckley golf club by politician-celebrity Robert Kilroy-Silk following a split from the United Kingdom Independence Party . Kilroy-Silk served as party leader from formation, through the 2005 General Election, until...
, taking several UKIP members, including both London Assembly members, with him.
UKIP had hoped to sustain its momentum in the 2005 General Election, but despite fielding 495 candidates, the party failed to achieve a breakthrough as they had in the European elections a year before. UKIP gained 618,000 votes, or 2.3% of the total votes cast in the election (an increase of 220,000 votes / 0.8% from their result in the 2001 general election). This placed them fourth in terms of total votes cast, behind the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
and ahead of the Scottish National Party
Scottish National Party
The Scottish National Party is a social-democratic political party in Scotland which campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom....
. However the party again failed to win any seats at Westminster. 45 UKIP candidates saved their deposits, up from only six in 2001. Their best performance was in Boston & Skegness, where their candidate Richard Horsnell came 3rd with 9.6% of the vote. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/77.stm
Following the 2005 general election, Kilroy-Silk subsequently resigned from Veritas after its terrible performance in the election, harnessing only 40,000 votes.
2009 European Elections
On 28 March 2009, the Conservative Party's biggest-ever donor Stuart WheelerStuart Wheeler
Stuart Wheeler is a British businessman and politician. He made his fortune as the founder of the spread betting firm IG Index in 1974, but is best known for his political activism, being formerly a major donor to the Conservative Party and since 2011, has been treasurer of the United Kingdom...
donated £100,000 to UKIP after criticising David Cameron
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
's stance towards the Lisbon treaty and the European Union. He said, "if they kick me out I will understand. I will be very sorry about it, but it won't alter my stance." The following day, 29 March, he was expelled from the Conservative Party.
On 15 May 2009, a YouGov poll conducted for The Sun newspaper showed UKIP as having 15% of the vote for the impending European Elections, only 5% behind the Labour Party. The surge in support was accredited by The Sun to public despair stemming from the MPs' expenses crisis.
Although the current make-up of UKIP MEPs is different due to the defection of David Campbell-Bannerman and Nikki Sinclaire's departure from the party, the regional breakdown of the vote was as follows:
| Constituency | Candidates | Votes | % | ±% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Midlands East Midlands (European Parliament constituency) East Midlands is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 5 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... |
Derek Clark Derek Clark Derek Roland Clark is a British politician, and Member of the European Parliament for the East Midlands region. He is a member of the United Kingdom Independence Party, first elected in 2004, and subsequently re-elected in 2009.He is a retired science teacher.-External links:**... ,Christopher Pain, Stephen Allison, Deva Kumarasiri, Irena Marriott |
201,184 | 16.4 | -9.6 |
| East of England East of England (European Parliament constituency) East of England is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 7 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... |
David Campbell Bannerman, Stuart Agnew Stuart Agnew John Stuart Agnew is a Member of the European Parliament for the East of England region for the United Kingdom Independence Party. He was elected in 2009.... , Andrew Smith, Stuart Gulleford, Amy O'Boyle, Mick McGough, Michael Baker, Marion Mason |
313,921 | 19.6 | 0.0 |
| London London (European Parliament constituency) London is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 8 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :The constituency corresponds to Greater London, in the south east of the United Kingdom.... |
Gerard Batten Gerard Batten Gerard Joseph Batten is a Member of the European Parliament for London for the United Kingdom Independence Party . He was first elected in 2004. He sits as a member of the Independence and Democracy Group.... , Ralph Atkinson, Michael Zuckerman, Tim Worstall Tim Worstall Tim Worstall is an English writer and blogger, who writes about a variety of topics, but particularly about economics. In his day job, he works as a consultant and dealer in scandium and other exotic metals... , Sunita Webb, Victor Webb, Strachan McDonald, Geoff Howard, Marcus Watney |
188,440 | 10.8 | -1.6 |
| North East England North East England (European Parliament constituency) North East England is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 3 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... |
Gordon Parkin, Sandra Allison, John Tennant | 90,700 | 15.4 | +3.2 |
| North West England North West England (European Parliament constituency) North West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For the 2009 elections it elects 8 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.-Boundaries:... |
Paul Nuttall Paul Nuttall Paul Andrew Nuttall is a former chairman of the United Kingdom Independence Party, and a Member of the European Parliament for the North West England region. He was elected in 2009... , Michael McManus, Graham Cannon, Nigel Brown, Hilary Jones, Philip Griffiths, Fred McGlade, Terry Durrance |
261,740 | 15.8 | +3.7 |
| South East England South East England (European Parliament constituency) South East England is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 10 Members of the European Parliament using the D'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... |
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.... , Marta Andreasen Marta Andreasen Marta Andreasen is an Argentine-born Spanish accountant, employed in January 2002 by the European Commission as Chief Accountant, and notable for raising concerns about flaws in the commission's accounting system which she felt left the commission vulnerable to potential fraud... , Steve Harris, Phillip Van der Elst, Harry Aldridge, Victor Webb, Christopher Browne, Andrew Moncreiff, Mark Stroud, Rob Burberry, Mahzar Manzoor, Ray Finch |
440,002 | 18.8 | -0.7 |
| South West England South West England (European Parliament constituency) South West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation, reduced from 7 in 2004.-Boundaries:... |
Trevor Colman Trevor Colman Trevor Colman is a Member of the European Parliament for South West England. He represents the 2nd seat in the constituency, for the United Kingdom Independence Party.... , Earl of Dartmouth William Legge, 10th Earl of Dartmouth William Legge, 10th Earl of Dartmouth is a British peer and politician. He is a Member of the European Parliament for South West England representing the United Kingdom Independence Party.-Early life:... , Gawain Towler, Julia Reid, Alan Wood, Stephanie McWilliam |
341,845 | 22.1 | -0.5 |
| West Midlands West Midlands (European Parliament constituency) West Midlands is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elected 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation. The constituency will also elect a "virtual MEP" who will be able to sit in the Parliament if the Treaty of Lisbon comes into effect... |
Mike Nattrass Mike Nattrass Mike Nattrass is an English politician and Member of the European Parliament, representing the West Midlands constituency for the UK Independence Party , elected for the first time in June 2004 and re-elected in June 2009.... , Nikki Sinclaire Nikki Sinclaire Nicole Sinclaire is a European politician from the United Kingdom and is a current MEP.Educated at the University of Canterbury graduating with a Bachelor of Laws qualification. Sinclaire has worked for Lloyds as a 'problem troubleshooter' was employed as a Gateway store manager and worked in... , Jill Seymour, Rustie Lee Rustie Lee Rustie Lee is a television chef and actress in the United Kingdom, most famous for her appearances in the 1980s on morning station, TV-am. She was born in Jamaica, but moved to Birmingham with her family as a child. Following her successful stint as a chef on TV-am in 1983, Lee took over from... , Malcolm Hurst, Jonathan Oakton |
300,471 | 21.3 | +3.8 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber Yorkshire and the Humber (European Parliament constituency) Yorkshire and the Humber is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... |
Godfrey Bloom Godfrey Bloom Godfrey Bloom is a Member of the European Parliament for Yorkshire and the Humber for the United Kingdom Independence Party... , Jonathan Arnott, Jason Smith, Toby Horton, David Daniel, Lynette Afshar |
213,750 | 17.4 | +2.9 |
| Wales Wales (European Parliament constituency) Wales is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 4 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... |
John Bufton John Bufton John Bufton , is a UKIP Member of the European Parliament for Wales.-Early life:He was educated at Elan Village Primary School and Llandrindod Wells High School, and joined the family haulage business before embarking on a career managing a residential care home for the elderly with the local... , David Bevan, Kevin Mahoney, David Rowlands |
87,585 | 12.8 | +2.3 |
The path to the 2010 general election
In September 2009, Nigel FarageNigel 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....
announced that he would be resigning as Leader of the party in order to stand against Speaker John Bercow
John Bercow
John Simon Bercow is a British politician who has been the Speaker of the House of Commons in the United Kingdom since June 2009. Prior to his election to Speaker he was a member of the Conservative party....
— an imperfectly observed convention states that the main parties do not normally nominate candidates against an incumbent Speaker. Malcolm Pearson, Baron Pearson of Rannoch
Malcolm Pearson, Baron Pearson of Rannoch
Malcolm Everard MacLaren Pearson, Baron Pearson of Rannoch is a British businessman and the former leader of the UK Independence Party . He is a member of the House of Lords.-Biography:...
, Gerard Batten
Gerard Batten
Gerard Joseph Batten is a Member of the European Parliament for London for the United Kingdom Independence Party . He was first elected in 2004. He sits as a member of the Independence and Democracy Group....
, Nikki Sinclaire
Nikki Sinclaire
Nicole Sinclaire is a European politician from the United Kingdom and is a current MEP.Educated at the University of Canterbury graduating with a Bachelor of Laws qualification. Sinclaire has worked for Lloyds as a 'problem troubleshooter' was employed as a Gateway store manager and worked in...
, Mike Nattrass
Mike Nattrass
Mike Nattrass is an English politician and Member of the European Parliament, representing the West Midlands constituency for the UK Independence Party , elected for the first time in June 2004 and re-elected in June 2009....
and Alan Wood stood for election, with Pearson winning.
UKIP fielded 572 candidates in the 2010 general election, with their main target being Buckingham
Buckingham (UK Parliament constituency)
Buckingham is a parliamentary 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:...
. UKIP aimed for a hung parliament in which they hoped the Liberal Democrats would drive through proportional representation
Proportional representation
Proportional representation is a concept in voting systems used to elect an assembly or council. PR means that the number of seats won by a party or group of candidates is proportionate to the number of votes received. For example, under a PR voting system if 30% of voters support a particular...
as a key demand to form a coalition government. Lord Pearson demanded that some candidates stand down in favour of eurosceptic Conservatives and Labour MPs, however, some refused to do so. This did not stop Lord Pearson from campaigning on behalf of the Conservative candidates citing that he was 'putting country before party'. These decisions drew some criticism from within the party from the likes of Michael Heaver of Young Independence, among others.
On the morning of polling day, Nigel Farage was injured when a light aircraft he was a passenger in crashed near Brackley
Brackley
Brackley is a town in south Northamptonshire, England. It is about from Oxford and miles form Northampton. Historically a market town based on the wool and lace trade, it was built on the intersecting trade routes between London, Birmingham and the English Midlands and between Cambridge and Oxford...
, Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
.
In the election itself the party polled 3.1% of the vote (919,471 votes), but took no seats. This made it the party with the largest percentage of the popular vote to win no seats in the election (In a fully proportional system, 3.1% of 649 seats would be just over 20 seats).
In UKIP's key target, despite Lord Tebbit and numerous senior Conservatives voicing support for Farage and a Conservative Home online survey put Farage on 64% and Bercow on 25%, Nigel Farage obtained just 17.4% of the vote in Buckingham - placing him third behind Bercow and independent John Stevens
John Stevens (politician)
John Christopher Courtenay Stevens is an English politician. A Conservative Member of the European Parliament from 1989 to 1999, he contested the Buckingham constituency in the 2010 general election as an independent, against Commons speaker John Bercow.-Background:Stevens was educated at...
(Buckinghamshire Campaign for Democracy)- who had previously resigned from the Conservatives to found the Pro-Euro Conservative Party
Pro-Euro Conservative Party
The Pro-Euro Conservative Party was a British political party announced by John Stevens and Brendan Donnelly in February 1999, formed to contest the 1999 European Parliament Elections. The founders were Members of the European Parliament who had resigned from the UK Conservative Party in protest at...
. UKIP also achieved third place in three other constituencies: North Cornwall
North Cornwall (UK Parliament constituency)
North Cornwall is a county 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 :...
, North Devon
North Devon (UK Parliament constituency)
North Devon is a county 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....
and Torridge and West Devon. Farage's result was the best in all constituencies contested in that election. The constituency of Boston and Skegness
Boston and Skegness
Boston and Skegness is a county 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 :...
also achieved a large percentage of vote, being the second best by terms of percentage.
UKIP lost five sitting councillors in the UK local elections in May 2010. The only one of those to have been previously elected as a UKIP councillor was Steve Allison in Hartlepool
Hartlepool
Hartlepool is a town and port in North East England.It was founded in the 7th century AD, around the Northumbrian monastery of Hartlepool Abbey. The village grew during the Middle Ages and developed a harbour which served as the official port of the County Palatine of Durham. A railway link from...
.
Re-election of Nigel Farage
Lord Pearson resigned as leader in August 2010, and Nigel Farage was re-elected against Professor Tim CongdonTim Congdon
Tim G. Congdon CBE ) is an economist, educated at Colchester Royal Grammar School and St. John's and Nuffield colleges at the University of Oxford, with a long record of commenting on public policy issues, including writing sympathetically about the monetarist approach to macroeconomic policy...
, David Bannerman, and Winston McKenzie
Winston McKenzie
Winston Truman McKenzie is a UK politician, notable for having joined every major political party, and for having stood as an independent or minor party candidate on numerous occasions...
with more than 60% of the vote. During his acceptance speech, he spoke out against the Coalition government, saying that the Conservative Party's policy on Europe can be summed up as: "Surrender, surrender, surrender."
Lord Pearson welcomed Nigel Farage's re-election, saying: "The UKIP crown returns to it rightful owner."
Since the 2010 general election
Since the 2010 general election, UKIP have gained a councillor on Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council. Stuart WheelerStuart Wheeler
Stuart Wheeler is a British businessman and politician. He made his fortune as the founder of the spread betting firm IG Index in 1974, but is best known for his political activism, being formerly a major donor to the Conservative Party and since 2011, has been treasurer of the United Kingdom...
, who once gave £5 million to the Conservatives, has also joined as the Party Treasurer.
In two by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
s in early 2011, UKIP fared better than predicted, with candidate Jane Collins coming second in a by-election for Barnsley Central. UKIP polled a higher vote than the combination of votes for the ruling coalition parties. Nigel Farage welcomed Jane Collins' success and said that UKIP should now aim to replace the Liberal Democrats as the third largest party, saying: "The Lib Dems are no longer the voice of opposition in British Politics - we are. Between now and the next general election our aim is to replace them as the third party in British politics."
UKIP fielded 1,217 candidates for the local council elections, a major increase since its previous campaigns but not enough to be able to have a party election broadcast on television. UKIP said that the party is well-organised in the South East, South West and Eastern regions but there are still places across the country where there are no UKIP candidates standing at all. There were many candidates from Young Independence, the Youth area of UKIP such as the Young Independence former and current chairmen, Michael Heaver and Harry Aldridge.
Although no Young Independence candidates were elected, many significantly increases their vote totals. For example, a candidate in Thurrock came within 98 votes of winning the council seat and making a gain from the Conservative party. Across the country, many UKIP candidates, whether from Young Independence or not either came second or third place, candidate Nathan Brittain of Newcastle-Under-Lyme
Newcastle-under-Lyme
Newcastle-under-Lyme is a market town in Staffordshire, England, and is the principal town of the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme. It is part of The Potteries Urban Area and North Staffordshire. In the 2001 census the town had a population of 73,944...
came second place with 31% of the vote. UKIP had done very well in Newcastle-under-Lyme
Newcastle-under-Lyme
Newcastle-under-Lyme is a market town in Staffordshire, England, and is the principal town of the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme. It is part of The Potteries Urban Area and North Staffordshire. In the 2001 census the town had a population of 73,944...
gaining a total of five seats on Newcastle Borough Council in 2007 and 2008 and three seats on Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
County Council in 2009. UKIP were defending three seats at the 2011 local elections and lost all of them to Labour, by mediocre majorities. Although UKIP did not poll well, it made gains across many parts of England, gaining two new councillors in Aylesbury Vale
Aylesbury Vale
The Aylesbury Vale is a large area of flat land mostly in Buckinghamshire, England. Its boundary is marked by Milton Keynes to the north, Leighton Buzzard and the Chiltern Hills to the east and south, Thame to the south and Bicester and Brackley to the west.The vale is named after Aylesbury, the...
, one councillor in Tunbridge Wells and another in Wycombe as well as taking control of Ramsey town council with nine UKIP councillors out of the 17. The Chairman of Young Independence, Harry Aldridge, was enthusiastic about the results, saying: “What we have seen in these elections is a raft of enthusiastic first time candidates from YI, from whom we have got some very encouraging results.” Whilst UKIP made gains and losses, the party fell short of Farage's predictions of major gains. However, UKIP candidates came second in many wards. The UKIP MEP Marta Andreasen
Marta Andreasen
Marta Andreasen is an Argentine-born Spanish accountant, employed in January 2002 by the European Commission as Chief Accountant, and notable for raising concerns about flaws in the commission's accounting system which she felt left the commission vulnerable to potential fraud...
called for Farage's resignation as leader of the party.
In the Welsh, Scottish Northern Irish elections, UKIP increased its share of the vote in all areas, retaining its sole Northern Irish councillor but failed to gain Welsh Assembly members which the media had speculated UKIP and the Green Party could have achieved. The party earned 4.6% (an increase of 0.7%) of the vote on the regional list, more than half of the Liberal Democrats share and comfortably higher than the Greens. In Northern Ireland, UKIP more than doubled its share of the vote but did not gain any seats. The same occurred in Scotland with UKIP more than doubling its share of the vote but failing to gain any seats.
On July 7, UKIP came in front of the Liberal Democrats in two local government by-elections, both in wards in which UKIP had never contested before. Farage used these results to reaffirm his commitment to replacing the Liberal Democrats.
On 5 September, a few days before UKIP's annual conference, the party chose Lawrence Webb as its mayoral candidate for the 2012 London mayoral election
London mayoral election, 2012
The 2012 London mayoral election will be held on Thursday 3 May 2012 to elect the Mayor of London. It will be the fourth such election since the post of Mayor of London was started in 2000...
with a 42% share of the vote. The other candidates were David Coburn, Paul Oakly, Winston McKenzie
Winston McKenzie
Winston Truman McKenzie is a UK politician, notable for having joined every major political party, and for having stood as an independent or minor party candidate on numerous occasions...
(who had previously stood for the leadership of UKIP), Michael McGough and Michael Corby.
On the day before UKIP's annual conference, the party came second in an Essex County Council by-election, beating the Labour and Liberal Democrat share of the vote put together, reducing the Conservative's majority substantially.
A day after UKIP's September conference in Eastbourne
Eastbourne
Eastbourne is a large town and borough in East Sussex, on the south coast of England between Brighton and Hastings. The town is situated at the eastern end of the chalk South Downs alongside the high cliff at Beachy Head...
, Nigel Farage (on Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
) reported that two Conservative councillors from Rushmoor Borough Council who had attended the conference had defected to UKIP over the government's actions on the Armed Forces and the refusal for a referendum on the European Union. On 10 October, Lord Hesketh defected from the Conservatives to UKIP, something that Nigel Farage and the UKIP leadership welcomed with open-arms and called the most high-profile Conservative defection to date. In an article by the Daily Mail, he says that he believes that the EU has 'betrayed the country's working people' and that he will be an active member of UKIP.
In a Meopham North by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
, UKIP came off second, tallying more than 34 per cent of the overall vote.. In early November, UKIP regained principal authority representation in the North East of England due to the defection of a South Tyneside
South Tyneside
South Tyneside is a metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear in North East England.It is bordered by four other boroughs - Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead to the west, Sunderland in the south, and North Tyneside to the north. The border county of Northumberland lies further north...
councillor.
Coverage of UKIP's activities in the mainstream media
Mainstream media
Mainstream media are those media disseminated via the largest distribution channels, which therefore represent what the majority of media consumers are likely to encounter...
in 2011 was comparatively small, with the exception of the Daily Express
Daily Express
The Daily Express switched from broadsheet to tabloid in 1977 and was bought by the construction company Trafalgar House in the same year. Its publishing company, Beaverbrook Newspapers, was renamed Express Newspapers...
newspaper which has had several spokesmen from the party quoted in its pages.
During 2011, UKIP spokespeople had some success in appearing in other media channels including television channel Russia Today
Russia Today
Russia Today may refer to:* Russia Today, an English language 24-hour television news channel from Russia. It was launched in 2005 and is not related to an online news service of the similar name operated by EIN News...
and on the Alex Jones
Alex Jones
Alex or Alexander Jones may refer to:*Alex Jones , U.S. radio host and filmmaker*Alex Jones , Major League Baseball pitcher from 1889 to 1903...
show.
Party leaders
- Dr. Alan SkedAlan SkedAlan 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...
- 1993–1997 - Craig MackinlayCraig MackinlayCraig Mackinlay is a British Eurosceptic politician.Mackinlay grew up in Rainham, Kent, and studied at the University of Birmingham. A chartered accountant by profession, first became opposed to British membership of the European Union when Britain dropped out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism...
- 1997 (acting leader) - Michael Holmes MEPMichael Holmes (politician)Michael Holmes is a former leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party and MEP for South West England.Holmes was elected leader of UKIP in 1997. In 1999 he and two other UKIP candidates were elected to the European Parliament. The following year, he stepped down from the leadership as a result...
- 1997–2000 (not an MEP until 1999) - Jeffrey Titford MEPJeffrey TitfordJeffrey 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...
- 2000–2002 - Roger Knapman MEPRoger KnapmanRoger Maurice Knapman is a British politician and the former leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party ....
- 2002–2006 (not an MEP until 2004) - Nigel Farage MEPNigel FarageNigel 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....
- 2006–2009 - Lord Pearson of Rannoch - 2009-2010
- Jeffrey TitfordJeffrey TitfordJeffrey 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...
- 2010 (acting leader) - Nigel Farage MEP - 2010 -
Policies
Although UKIP's original raison d'être was withdrawal from the European Union it was felt that the public perception of the party as a single-issue party – despite issuing a full manifesto – was damaging electoral progress and Nigel Farage, on becoming leader, started a wide-ranging policy review, his stated aim being 'the development of the party into broadly standing for traditional conservative and libertarianLibertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
values'. Malcolm Pearson, on becoming leader, built upon Farage's policy review, his fundamental propositions being the introduction of Swiss style
Voting in Switzerland
Voting in Switzerland is the process by which Swiss citizens make decisions about governance and elect officials. Voting takes place over the weekend, with emphasis being put on the Sunday...
referendums and direct democracy
Direct democracy
Direct democracy is a form of government in which people vote on policy initiatives directly, as opposed to a representative democracy in which people vote for representatives who then vote on policy initiatives. Direct democracy is classically termed "pure democracy"...
at local and national levels, and the opposition to Islamic fundamentalism
Islamic fundamentalism
Islamic fundamentalism is a term used to describe religious ideologies seen as advocating a return to the "fundamentals" of Islam: the Quran and the Sunnah. Definitions of the term vary. According to Christine L...
.
UKIP has subsequently produced detailed policy documents on taxation and education.
Economic policies
UKIP's economic stance is based on what it claims to be the need for much lower taxation in order to compete internationally. It proposes combining income taxIncome tax
An income tax is a tax levied on the income of individuals or businesses . Various income tax systems exist, with varying degrees of tax incidence. Income taxation can be progressive, proportional, or regressive. When the tax is levied on the income of companies, it is often called a corporate...
and national insurance
National Insurance
National Insurance in the United Kingdom was initially a contributory system of insurance against illness and unemployment, and later also provided retirement pensions and other benefits...
into a single flat tax
Flat tax
A flat tax is a tax system with a constant marginal tax rate. Typically the term flat tax is applied in the context of an individual or corporate income that will be taxed at one marginal rate...
at 31 per cent, which it claims would take 4.5 million lower-paid workers out of the income tax system completely. UKIP also proposes cuts in corporation taxes
United Kingdom corporation tax
Corporation tax is a tax levied in the United Kingdom on the profits made by companies and on the profits of permanent establishments of non-UK resident companies and associations that trade in the EU. Prior to the tax's enactment on 1 April 1965, companies and individuals paid the same income tax,...
and the abolition of inheritance taxes. On the subject of business and enterprise, UKIP proposes to establish 'Production Enterprise Centres' to assist companies in research, design, prototyping and marketing. This would mean that small and medium-sized enterprises would be provided with skills to enter into markets without being shunned, and thus businesses failing to survive.
On the issue of the national debt
United Kingdom national debt
The British public debt is the money borrowed by the Government of the United Kingdom at any one time through the issue of securities by the British Treasury and other government agencies. The origins of the British national debt can be found during the reign of William III, who engaged a syndicate...
, UKIP admits that there should be cuts in government services but ones of front line status should still thrive and be able. UKIP also believes that things such as administration and politicians salaries should be at the top of the list for government cuts instead of services. The party also believes that some sere there is substantial waste and inefficiency that can be eliminated while vital front-line services remain fully protected. UKIP also aims to reduce the public sector size to what it was in 1997, making cuts into unnecessary and taxpayer-costly jobs and to also create one million skilled jobs in manufacturing in exchange for public sector jobs. Finally, the party believes profligate government spending is killing off the productive activity that provides tax funds, and that easing the burden will be the route to revitalising the economy.
The party also advocates closer economic ties with the Commonwealth of Nations
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
.
Education policy
UKIP's policy paper on education says it regards the aim of education as being to bring out the talents and abilities of every child. The party wants to give schools more freedom to determine their own direction so parents can have a more meaningful choice. It supports education vouchers for parents; would reform the national curriculum to give schools a greater say over subjects taught; and would abolish nationwide testing of children before the age of 11. UKIP supports grammar schools equally with the other kinds of state-funded schools. Lord Pearson, on becoming leader, would go onto propose the introduction of a school voucher system. UKIP also plans to re-introduce the three Rs into schools and to introduce simple reading tests to students at the age of 7. UKIP also aims to allow teachers to do their jobs with minimal government interference. It plans to abolish OfstedOfsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills is the non-ministerial government department of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools In England ....
with its powers to be transferred to school governing bodies with a new independent Educational Inspectorate made up of experienced teachers. Another education policy is to allow schools a greater say over what they can teach although key subjects will be retained.
UKIP has condemned the Badman Review
Badman Review
The Badman Review, also known as the Review into Elective Home Education in England, was conducted by Graham Badman the former Director of Children's Services at Kent County Council....
, which recommends greater regulation of home educators in England, and it supports home education as a parental choice.
Defence
The UK Independence Party claims that the Armed Forces are 'starved' of money, insufficient resources, equipment and expensive, wasteful military operations. On the War in AfghanistanWar in Afghanistan (2001–present)
The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...
, UKIP aims to create a single, clear objective or look to negotiate a withdrawal from the area. The party is also committed to NATO and is fully against the creation of a European Army: Eurocorps
Eurocorps
Eurocorps is a multinational standing army corps available for the European Union and the Atlantic Alliance.Headquartered in Strasbourg, France, the force was created in May 1992, activated in October 1993 and declared operational in 1995....
. UKIP also agrees that defence spending should be increased; the party believes that the structure of the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
is bureaucratic and wasteful. UKIP plans to cut bureaucracy and waste but increase spending in the Armed Forces and improve equipment. UKIP also pledges to:
- Spend an extra 40% on defence annually, another 1% of GDP.
- Expand the Army by 25% to 125,000 personnel and double the size of the Territorial Army.
- On naval affairs; UKIP wishes to restore the Royal NavyRoyal NavyThe Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
to its 2001 strength with three new aircraft carriers and nearly 70 other ships, at the same time guaranteeing the future of the PlymouthPlymouthPlymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
, PortsmouthPortsmouthPortsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
and RosythRosythRosyth is a town located on the Firth of Forth, three miles south of the centre of Dunfermline. According to an estimate taken in 2008, the town has a population of 12,790....
naval bases. - On air force affairs; UKIP plans on increasing the Royal Air ForceRoyal Air ForceThe Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
's capability by buying more essential helicopters, transport aircraft and 50 extra Joint Strike Fighter Lightning aircraft. - Cut the bureaucracy of the Ministry of DefenceMinistry of Defence (United Kingdom)The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
, which has one civil servant for every two military personnel. - UKIP aims to introduce better pay, conditions and medical care for the British Armed Forces personnel and their families.
British nationality
The UK Independence Party states that Britain and Britishness have been "betrayed by misguided politically correct ideology, extremist Islam and errant nationalism from within", that "Britain is a proud nation state, which does not wish its identity to be diluted or trivialised... and feel it is time to assert our independence, identity and traditions."UKIP asserts that it believes in civic nationalism
Civic nationalism
Liberal Nationalism is a kind of nationalism identified by political philosophers who believe in a non-xenophobic form of nationalism compatible with liberal values of freedom, tolerance, equality, and individual rights. Ernest Renan and John Stuart Mill are often thought to be early liberal...
. UKIP "opposes multiculturalism
Multiculturalism
Multiculturalism is the appreciation, acceptance or promotion of multiple cultures, applied to the demographic make-up of a specific place, usually at the organizational level, e.g...
and political correctness
Political correctness
Political correctness is a term which denotes language, ideas, policies, and behavior seen as seeking to minimize social and institutional offense in occupational, gender, racial, cultural, sexual orientation, certain other religions, beliefs or ideologies, disability, and age-related contexts,...
but rejects "blood and soil" ethnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism is a form of nationalism wherein the "nation" is defined in terms of ethnicity. Whatever specific ethnicity is involved, ethnic nationalism always includes some element of descent from previous generations and the implied claim of ethnic essentialism, i.e...
. UKIP promotes uni-culturalism, a single British culture embracing all races, religions and colours". It states that Britishness
Britishness
Britishness is the state or quality of being British, or of embodying British characteristics, and is used to refer to that which binds and distinguishes the British people and forms the basis of their unity and identity, or else to explain expressions of British culture—such as habits, behaviours...
can be defined in terms of belief in democracy, fair play and freedom.
UKIP would replace the May Day
May Day
May Day on May 1 is an ancient northern hemisphere spring festival and usually a public holiday; it is also a traditional spring holiday in many cultures....
bank holiday
Bank Holiday
A bank holiday is a public holiday in the United Kingdom or a colloquialism for public holiday in Ireland. There is no automatic right to time off on these days, although the majority of the population is granted time off work or extra pay for working on these days, depending on their contract...
in England with a St George's Day
St George's Day
St George's Day is celebrated by the several nations, kingdoms, countries, and cities of which Saint George is the patron saint. St George's Day is celebrated on 23 April, the traditionally accepted date of Saint George's death in AD 303...
bank holiday. It would introduce an English Parliament
Devolved English parliament
A devolved English parliament or assembly, giving separate decision-making powers to representatives for voters in England similar to the representation given by the National Assembly for Wales, Scottish Parliament and the Northern Ireland Assembly, is currently a growing issue in the politics of...
and end the Barnett formula
Barnett formula
The Barnett formula is a mechanism used by The Treasury in the United Kingdom to adjust the amounts of public expenditure allocated to Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales automatically to reflect changes in spending levels allocated to public services in England, England and Wales or Great...
.
UKIP has stated that it will "enthusiastically support teaching Gaelic languages and histories in England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and Cornwall, and support local and area heritage across the UK."
UKIP opposes the takeover of major British companies, such as the takeover of Cadbury's by Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods Inc. is an American confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate. It markets many brands in more than 170 countries. 12 of its brands annually earn more than $1 billion worldwide: Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident, Tang...
in 2010, and would create a new parliamentary committee that would be given powers to block the sale or merger of companies and to attach conditions, including requiring a UK Government “Golden Share”.
All media, businesses, schools and colleges would be required to use imperial measurements alongside metric
Metric system
The metric system is an international decimalised system of measurement. France was first to adopt a metric system, in 1799, and a metric system is now the official system of measurement, used in almost every country in the world...
measurements.
Immigration and asylum
In 2011, British academics Matthew Goodwin, Robert Ford and David Cutts published a study revealing significant xenophobicXenophobia
Xenophobia is defined as "an unreasonable fear of foreigners or strangers or of that which is foreign or strange". It comes from the Greek words ξένος , meaning "stranger," "foreigner" and φόβος , meaning "fear."...
and increasing Islamophobic
Islamophobia
Islamophobia describes prejudice against, hatred or irrational fear of Islam or MuslimsThe term dates back to the late 1980s or early 1990s, but came into common usage after the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States....
elements in UKIP's strategy. They showed that the discourse of the Independence Party on immigration and national identity is similar to the one of British National Party
British National Party
The British National Party is a British far-right political party formed as a splinter group from the National Front by John Tyndall in 1982...
(BNP), with the former's being gradually more moderate.
UKIP states that some 2.5 million immigrants have arrived since 1997 and up to one million economic migrants live in the UK illegally. UKIP asserts that "former New Labour staff maintain that this policy has been a deliberate attempt to water down the British identity and buy votes. EU and human rights legislation means we cannot even expel foreign criminals if they come from another EU country. This is why immigration control is so essential and overdue." UKIP will:
- Call for an immediate five-year freeze on immigration for permanent settlement will insure that any future immigration does not exceed 50,000 people per year.
- Ensure that after the five-year freeze, any future immigration for permanent settlement will be on a strictly controlled, points-based system similar to Australia, Canada and New Zealand.
- Regain control of the UK's borders. Entry for work will be on a time-limited work permit only while entry for non-work related purposes (e.g., holiday or study) will be on a temporary visa. Overstaying a visa will be treated as a criminal offence.
- Triple UK Borders Agency staff engaged in controlling immigration up to 30,000.
- Return people found to be living illegally in the UK to their country of origin. No amnesty for illegal immigrants as it encourages illegal immigration.
- Require those living in the UK under ‘Permanent Leave to Remain’ to abide by a legally binding ‘Undertaking of Residence’ ensuring they respect our laws or face deportation. Such citizens will not be eligible for benefits. People applying for British citizenship will have to have completed a period of not less than five years as a resident on ‘Permanent Leave to Remain’. New citizens should pass a citizenship test and sign a ‘Declaration of British Citizenship’ promising to uphold Britain’s democratic and tolerant way of life.
- Enforce the existing terms of the 1951 UN Convention on Refugees until Britain replaces it with an Asylum Act. To avoid disappearances, asylum seekers will be held in secure and humane centres until applications are processed, with limited right to appeal. Those seeking asylum must do so in the first ‘designated safe country’ they enter. Existing asylum seekers who have had their application refused will be required to leave the country, along with any dependants.
- Certain visas, such as student visas, will require face-to-face interviews, and UKIP will crack down on bogus educational establishments
- Repeal the 1998 Human Rights Act and withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. In future the British courts will not be allowed to appeal to any international treaty or convention that overrides or sets aside the provisions of any statue passed by the UK Parliament.
- Reintroduce The ‘Primary Purpose Rule’ (abolished by the Labour Government), whereby those marrying or seeking to marry a British citizen will have to convince the admitting officer that marriage, not residence, is their primary purpose in seeking to enter the UK.
- End the active promotion of the doctrine of multiculturalism by local and national government and all publicly funded bodies
Direct democracy and referendums
UKIP would introduce direct democracy whereby if a fixed proportion of the electorate depending oneach constituency (normally 5 per cent) signs a petition demanding a referendum on any major issue
which is of concern to them, it shall be granted a referendum within three months for local petitions and six months for national petitions.
Energy and environmental policies
UKIP favours an expansion of nuclear powerNuclear power in the United Kingdom
Nuclear power currently generates around a sixth of the United Kingdom's electricity. As of 2011, the United Kingdom operates 19 nuclear reactors at nine locations...
for reasons of energy security. UKIP is sceptical
Global warming controversy
Global warming controversy refers to a variety of disputes, significantly more pronounced in the popular media than in the scientific literature, regarding the nature, causes, and consequences of global warming...
of anthropogenic global warming, and suggests instead that the current warming is similar to that of previous geological cycles, and calls for further evidence provided by a Royal Commission before it will accept that it is manmade. It does not believe large-scale cuts of carbon emissions are necessary, arguing that technological innovation is already moving towards decarbonisation, and also argues that plans to invest in wind power
Wind power in the United Kingdom
By mid-2011, the installed capacity of wind power in the United Kingdom was over 5.7 gigawatts and the UK is ranked as the world’s eighth largest producer of wind power. Wind power is expected to continue growing in the UK for the foreseeable future, RenewableUK estimates that more than...
are uneconomic.
Animal welfare
UKIP would introduce labelling schemes to imports indicating the methods of production, e.g., battery cages, sow tethers, veal crates, whilst maintaining current levels of British animal welfare. They would use advertising campaigns to educate the consumer about the labelling schemes.UKIP would look at the present system of import control to find out how it can be strengthened using expert opinion. UKIP state that they will rely on British veterinary and scientific advice in the event of any disease outbreaks including Foot-and-Mouth Disease
Foot-and-mouth disease
Foot-and-mouth disease or hoof-and-mouth disease is an infectious and sometimes fatal viral disease that affects cloven-hoofed animals, including domestic and wild bovids...
and Bovine TB.
GM foods
UKIP is opposed to the production of GM crops in Britain, yet open to scientific research, advice and consumer demand. UKIP would also require that all imported GM produce be labelled as 'genetically modified'.Identity cards and civil liberties
UKIP are against the Identity Cards Act 2006. In December 2004, UKIP affiliated to the anti-ID card campaign, No2IDNO2ID
NO2ID, the public campaign, was formed in 2004 to campaign against the United Kingdom government's plans to introduce UK ID Cards and the associated National Identity Register, which it believes has negative implications for privacy, civil liberties and personal safety.NO2ID is entirely independent...
. Concern for civil liberties also led UKIP to oppose the Civil Contingencies Act 2004
Civil Contingencies Act 2004
The Civil Contingencies Act 2004 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that establishes a coherent framework for emergency planning and response ranging from local to national level...
, which gives additional powers to the UK Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
in broadly defined "emergency situations". UKIP's Jeffrey Titford MEP
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...
condemned the bill as "totalitarian".
Local government
UKIP seeks to give more powers to local authorities.They would restore the county as a key government with unitaries only where local people prefer them.
UKIP would use city-wide authorities to provide continuity and strategic direction, with counties cooperating on area-wide strategies, where necessary. However, area-wide co-operation across large scale planning, transport and development will be encouraged.
Grouping in the European Parliament
In 1999, three UKIP members were elected to the European Parliament. Together with eurosceptics from other countries, they formed a grouping called Europe of Democracies and DiversitiesEurope of Democracies and Diversities
Europe of Democracies and Diversities was a euro-sceptic political group with seats in the European Parliament between 1999 and 2004. Following the elections in 2004, the former MEPs of the group took MEPs from the new member countries on board and together, they registered the new group...
(EDD).
In 2004, 37 MEP
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
s from the UK, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
and Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
founded a new European Parliamentary group called Independence and Democracy
Independence and Democracy
The Independence/Democracy Group in the European Parliament was a group of eurosceptic and eurorealist political parties in the 2004-2009 term of the European Parliament. It collapsed following the 2009 European elections after losing many of its MEPs....
from the old Europe of Democracies and Diversities
Europe of Democracies and Diversities
Europe of Democracies and Diversities was a euro-sceptic political group with seats in the European Parliament between 1999 and 2004. Following the elections in 2004, the former MEPs of the group took MEPs from the new member countries on board and together, they registered the new group...
group. However, following the European Parliament election, 2009
European Parliament election, 2009
Elections to the European Parliament were held in the 27 member states of the European Union between 4 and 7 June 2009. A total of 736 Members of the European Parliament were elected to represent some 500 million Europeans, making these the biggest trans-national elections in history...
, where Eurosceptic parties from Denmark, Sweden and elsewhere lost all representation, the ID group was dissolved.
UKIP has since formed a new right-wing grouping called Europe of Freedom and Democracy
Europe of Freedom and Democracy
Europe of Freedom and Democracy is a Eurosceptic political group in the European Parliament. Formed after the European parliamentary election in 2009, it is mostly made up of elements of the now defunct Independence/Democracy and Union for a Europe of Nations groups from the out-going...
(EFD) comprising nationalist, Eurosceptic, conservative, and other political factions. This group is more right wing than the older Independence and Democracy grouping.
Current representatives
UKIP now has 11 MEPs in European Parliament. Mike Nattrass and Trevor Colman have left the EFD grouping but still stand for UKIP.| East Midlands East Midlands (European Parliament constituency) East Midlands is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 5 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... |
Derek Clark Derek Clark Derek Roland Clark is a British politician, and Member of the European Parliament for the East Midlands region. He is a member of the United Kingdom Independence Party, first elected in 2004, and subsequently re-elected in 2009.He is a retired science teacher.-External links:**... |
| East of England East of England (European Parliament constituency) East of England is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 7 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... |
Stuart Agnew Stuart Agnew John Stuart Agnew is a Member of the European Parliament for the East of England region for the United Kingdom Independence Party. He was elected in 2009.... |
| London London (European Parliament constituency) London is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 8 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :The constituency corresponds to Greater London, in the south east of the United Kingdom.... |
Gerard Batten Gerard Batten Gerard Joseph Batten is a Member of the European Parliament for London for the United Kingdom Independence Party . He was first elected in 2004. He sits as a member of the Independence and Democracy Group.... |
| North West England North West England (European Parliament constituency) North West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For the 2009 elections it elects 8 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.-Boundaries:... |
Paul Nuttall Paul Nuttall Paul Andrew Nuttall is a former chairman of the United Kingdom Independence Party, and a Member of the European Parliament for the North West England region. He was elected in 2009... |
| South East England South East England (European Parliament constituency) South East England is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 10 Members of the European Parliament using the D'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... |
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.... , Marta Andreasen Marta Andreasen Marta Andreasen is an Argentine-born Spanish accountant, employed in January 2002 by the European Commission as Chief Accountant, and notable for raising concerns about flaws in the commission's accounting system which she felt left the commission vulnerable to potential fraud... |
| South West England South West England (European Parliament constituency) South West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation, reduced from 7 in 2004.-Boundaries:... |
Trevor Colman Trevor Colman Trevor Colman is a Member of the European Parliament for South West England. He represents the 2nd seat in the constituency, for the United Kingdom Independence Party.... , Earl of Dartmouth William Legge, 10th Earl of Dartmouth William Legge, 10th Earl of Dartmouth is a British peer and politician. He is a Member of the European Parliament for South West England representing the United Kingdom Independence Party.-Early life:... |
| Wales Wales (European Parliament constituency) Wales is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 4 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... |
John Bufton John Bufton John Bufton , is a UKIP Member of the European Parliament for Wales.-Early life:He was educated at Elan Village Primary School and Llandrindod Wells High School, and joined the family haulage business before embarking on a career managing a residential care home for the elderly with the local... |
| Yorkshire and the Humber Yorkshire and the Humber (European Parliament constituency) Yorkshire and the Humber is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... |
Godfrey Bloom Godfrey Bloom Godfrey Bloom is a Member of the European Parliament for Yorkshire and the Humber for the United Kingdom Independence Party... |
| West Midlands West Midlands (European Parliament constituency) West Midlands is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elected 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation. The constituency will also elect a "virtual MEP" who will be able to sit in the Parliament if the Treaty of Lisbon comes into effect... |
Mike Nattrass Mike Nattrass Mike Nattrass is an English politician and Member of the European Parliament, representing the West Midlands constituency for the UK Independence Party , elected for the first time in June 2004 and re-elected in June 2009.... |
Ramsey Town Council
On 6 May 2011, the party won nine out of the seventeen seats for Ramsey Town Council in HuntingdonHuntingdon (UK Parliament constituency)
Huntingdon is a county 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....
, Cambridgeshire. Before the election of 2011, the party only had one seat in the town council. On 12 May, UKIP councillor Lisa Duffy was elected as Mayor. The UKIP group leader for Huntingdonshire District Council said that the town council under UKIP will "be standing up for volunteers and the third sector and will be making grants to them to help the big society develop." The Daily Mail has claimed that UKIP "has made political history after taking control of its first council in the UK".
Relationship with other parties
| Party | Name | Office held | Year elected/took seat | Year retired/defeated etc | Defection | Other | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative 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... |
|||||||
| Johnathan Aitken Johnathan Aitken Johnathan James Aitken is a retired Canadian ice hockey defenceman.-Playing career:Aitken was drafted 8th overall in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft by the Boston Bruins. He only played three games for them. For the 2000–01 season he went over to the Czech Republic to play for HC Sparta Praha... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for South Thanet - Chief Secretary to the Treasury Chief Secretary to the Treasury The Chief Secretary to the Treasury is the third most senior ministerial position in HM Treasury, after the Prime Minister and the Chancellor of the Exchequer . In recent years, the office holder has usually been given a junior position in the British Cabinet... (1994–1995) |
1983 United Kingdom general election, 1983 The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945... |
1997 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... - Defeated |
2004 | |||
| Sir Richard Body | MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Boston and Skegness |
1966 United Kingdom general election, 1966 The 1966 United Kingdom general election on 31 March 1966 was called by sitting Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson. Wilson's decision to call an election turned on the fact that his government, elected a mere 17 months previously in 1964 had an unworkably small majority of only 4 MPs... |
2001 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... - Retired |
2005 | |||
| Sir Nicholas Bonsor, 4th Baronet Nicholas Bonsor Sir Nicholas Cosmo Bonsor, 4th Baronet DL is a British Conservative politician.Bonsor was Member of Parliament for Nantwich from 1979 to 1983, then for Upminster from 1983 until he lost the seat to Labour's Keith Darvill in 1997... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Upminster Upminster (UK Parliament constituency) Upminster was a constituency of the House of Commons in east London, which 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... - Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Minister of State for Foreign Affairs is a junior ministerial position in the British government.-Ministers of State for Foreign Affairs 1945-1968:*1945: William Mabane*1945-1946: Philip Noel-Baker*1946-1950: Hector McNeil*1950-1951: Kenneth Younger... (1995-1997) |
1979 United Kingdom general election, 1979 The United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats... |
1997 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... - Defeated |
2010 | During the 2010 pledged his support for 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.... . |
||
| Timothy Brinton Timothy Brinton Timothy Denis Brinton , sometimes referred to as Tim Brinton, was a British broadcaster and Conservative Party politician... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Gravesham Gravesham (UK Parliament constituency) Gravesham is a county 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... |
1979 United Kingdom general election, 1979 The United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats... |
1987 United Kingdom general election, 1987 The United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the British House of Commons. The election was the third consecutive election victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, who became the first Prime Minister since the 2nd... - Retired |
2003 | |||
| Michael Brotherton Michael Brotherton Michael Lewis Brotherton is a British journalist and politician. A Conservative, he had a promising Parliamentary career and has worked as a Parliamentary consultant since his constituency was broken up in boundary changes.... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Louth Louth, Lincolnshire (UK Parliament constituency) Louth was a county constituency in Lincolnshire which returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 until it was abolished for the 1983 general election.... |
October 1974 United Kingdom general election, October 1974 The United Kingdom general election of October 1974 took place on 10 October 1974 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. It was the second general election of that year and resulted in the Labour Party led by Harold Wilson, winning by a tiny majority of 3 seats.The election of... |
1983 United Kingdom general election, 1983 The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945... - Retired |
2007 | |||
| John Browne John Browne (UK politician) John Ernest Douglas Delavalette Browne is a former British politician who is currently acting as a political and financial consultant in West Palm Beach, Florida, USA.... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Winchester |
1979 United Kingdom general election, 1979 The United Kingdom general election of 1979 was held on 3 May 1979 to elect 635 members to the British House of Commons. The Conservative Party, led by Margaret Thatcher ousted the incumbent Labour government of James Callaghan with a parliamentary majority of 43 seats... |
1992 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... - Defeated |
2000 | |||
| Christopher Gill | MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Ludlow Ludlow (UK Parliament constituency) Ludlow is a county 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.... |
1987 United Kingdom general election, 1987 The United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the British House of Commons. The election was the third consecutive election victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, who became the first Prime Minister since the 2nd... |
2001 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... - Retired |
2006 | |||
| Neil Hamilton Neil Hamilton (politician) Mostyn Neil Hamilton is a former British barrister, teacher and Conservative MP. Since losing his seat in 1997 and leaving politics, Hamilton and his wife Christine have become media celebrities... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Tatton Tatton (UK Parliament constituency) - Elections in the 1990s :- Elections in the 1980s :- Sources :* Data for the 2005 election are from the .* Data for the 2001 election are from http://www.election.demon.co.uk/.... |
1983 United Kingdom general election, 1983 The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945... |
1997 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... - Defeated |
2002 | |||
| Roger Knapman Roger Knapman Roger Maurice Knapman is a British politician and the former leader of the United Kingdom Independence Party .... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Stroud Stroud (UK Parliament constituency) Stroud is a county 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.... - Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury Lord of the Treasury In the United Kingdom, there are at least six Lords of the Treasury who serve concurrently. Traditionally, this board consists of the First Lord of the Treasury, the Second Lord of the Treasury, and four or more junior lords .Strictly they are commissioners for exercising the office of Lord... (1995-1997) |
1987 United Kingdom general election, 1987 The United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the British House of Commons. The election was the third consecutive election victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, who became the first Prime Minister since the 2nd... |
1997 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... - Defeated |
1999 | Leader of 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... (2002-2006) and Member of the European Parliament Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,... for the South West England South West England (European Parliament constituency) South West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation, reduced from 7 in 2004.-Boundaries:... (2004-2009 European Parliament election, 2009 (United Kingdom) The European Parliament election was the United Kingdom's component of the 2009 European Parliament election, the voting for which was held on Thursday 4 June 2009, coinciding with the 2009 local elections in England. Most of the results of the election were announced on Sunday 7 June, after... ) - Retired |
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| 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... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Beckenham Beckenham (UK Parliament constituency) Beckenham is a parliamentary 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.-Constituency profile:... |
1992 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... |
1997 Beckenham by-election, 1997 A by-election in Beckenham, England, was called in 1997 when the sitting Member of Parliament, Piers Merchant , resigned from Parliament on 21 October 1997... - Resigned |
2003 | |||
| Dr Bob Spink Bob Spink Robert Michael Spink is a politician in the United Kingdom. He was elected as the Conservative Party Member of Parliament for Castle Point in Essex in 1992, lost his seat in 1997, but regained it in 2001... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Castle Point Castle Point (UK Parliament constituency) Castle Point is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It returns one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system.It was created in 1983, primarily... |
2001 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... |
2010 - Defeated | 2008 | First UKIP MP in the House of Commons, joined after being expelled from the Conservatives. | ||
| Walter Sweeney Walter Sweeney Walter Edward Sweeney is a British Conservative politician.-Member of Parliament:In 1992, Sweeney was elected MP for the Vale of Glamorgan by just 19 votes, defeating Labour's John Smith who had received the seat in a 1989 by-election... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Vale of Glamorgan Vale of Glamorgan (UK Parliament constituency) Vale of Glamorgan is a county constituency in South Wales, represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom... |
1992 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... |
1997 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... - Defeated |
2004 | |||
| Charles Wardle Charles Wardle Charles Frederick Wardle was a Conservative Party member of the British Parliament for Bexhill and Battle.He announced he would not contest the 2001 election in early 2000 after it was disclosed that he was doing consultancy for Mohammed Al-Fayed. He was replaced by Gregory Barker in the 2001... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Bexhill and Battle |
1983 United Kingdom general election, 1983 The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945... |
2001 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... - Retired |
2001 | Didn't "join" but announced that he would be supporting 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.... 's attempt to succeed him as MP 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... |
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| Sir John Wells John Wells (politician) Sir John Julius Wells is a former British Conservative Party politician.Wells was educated at Eton College and Corpus Christi College, Oxford. He served in the RNVR during World War II, as a seaman in 1942, commissioned in 1943 and in submarines until 1946... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Maidstone Maidstone (UK Parliament constituency) Maidstone was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.The parliamentary borough of Maidstone returned two Members of Parliament from 1552 until 1885, when its representation was reduced to one member... |
1959 United Kingdom general election, 1959 This United Kingdom general election was held on 8 October 1959. It marked a third successive victory for the ruling Conservative Party, led by Harold Macmillan... |
1983 United Kingdom general election, 1983 The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945... - Retired |
2010 | During the 2010 General Election walked unannounced into Farage's campaign office saying to UKIP staff "Not sure what I can do for you, but I am all yours for the day." | ||
| Lord Grantley Richard Norton, 8th Baron Grantley Richard William Brinsley Norton, 8th Baron Grantley is a retired banker and politician. In early life he worked for the Conservative Party, but joined the United Kingdom Independence Party when it was founded in 1993... |
Member of the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... |
1995 | 1999 | 1993 | Leader of UKIP in the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... |
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| The 10th Viscount Exmouth Viscount Exmouth right|thumb|Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount ExmouthViscount Exmouth, of Canonteign in the County of Devon, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1816 for the prominent naval commander Edward Pellew, 1st Baron Exmouth... |
Member of the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... |
1970 | 1999 | 2000 | |||
| The Earl of Bradford Richard Bridgeman, 7th Earl of Bradford Richard Thomas Orlando Bridgeman, 7th Earl of Bradford is a British peer.-Biography:Richard Bradford is the son of Gerald Bridgeman, 6th Earl of Bradford and Mary Willoughby Montgomery. He was educated at St... |
Member of the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... |
1981 | 1999 | 1999 | |||
| The Duke of Rutland David Manners, 11th Duke of Rutland David Charles Robert Manners, 11th Duke of Rutland is a British peer and landowner. He was born the elder son of the 10th Duke of Rutland by his second wife, the former Frances Sweeney... |
Member of the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... |
1999 | 1999 | 1999 | |||
| The Duke of Somerset John Seymour, 19th Duke of Somerset thumb|right|200px|Portrait by [[Allan Warren]]John Michael Edward Seymour, 19th Duke of Somerset, DL is the present holder of the Dukedom of Somerset and a major landowner in Wiltshire and Devon. He is the son of Percy Seymour, 18th Duke of Somerset and Jane Thomas, and was styled Lord Seymour... |
Member of the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... |
1984 | 1999 | 2004 | |||
| The Duke of Devonshire Andrew Cavendish, 11th Duke of Devonshire Andrew Robert Buxton Cavendish, 11th Duke of Devonshire KG, MC, PC , styled Lord Andrew Cavendish until 1944 and Marquess of Hartington from 1944 to 1950, was a British Conservative politician... |
Member of the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... |
1950 | 1999 | 2001 | |||
| The Earl of Wemyss and March James Charteris, 13th Earl of Wemyss James Donald Charteris, 13th Earl of Wemyss and 9th Earl of March, is a member of the Scottish peerage, the 13th Earl of Wemyss and 9th Earl of March.Neidpath was educated first at Eton.... |
2003 | ||||||
| The Earl of Dartmouth William Legge, 10th Earl of Dartmouth William Legge, 10th Earl of Dartmouth is a British peer and politician. He is a Member of the European Parliament for South West England representing the United Kingdom Independence Party.-Early life:... |
Member of the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... |
1997 | 1999 | 2007 | MEP Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,... for South West England South West England (European Parliament constituency) South West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation, reduced from 7 in 2004.-Boundaries:... (2009 European Parliament election, 2009 (United Kingdom) The European Parliament election was the United Kingdom's component of the 2009 European Parliament election, the voting for which was held on Thursday 4 June 2009, coinciding with the 2009 local elections in England. Most of the results of the election were announced on Sunday 7 June, after... - ) |
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| The Lord Pearson Malcolm Pearson, Baron Pearson of Rannoch Malcolm Everard MacLaren Pearson, Baron Pearson of Rannoch is a British businessman and the former leader of the UK Independence Party . He is a member of the House of Lords.-Biography:... |
Member of the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... |
1990 | 2007 | Leader of 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... (2009-2010) |
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| The Lord Willoughby de Broke David Verney, 21st Baron Willoughby de Broke Leopold David Verney, 21st Baron Willoughby de Broke, FRSA, FRGS is a British peer. He is one of the 92 hereditary peers elected to remain in the House of Lords after the passing of the House of Lords Act 1999; originally elected a Conservative peer, he joined United Kingdom Independence Party in... |
Member of the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... |
1986 | 2007 | ||||
| The Viscount Monckton Christopher Monckton, 3rd Viscount Monckton of Brenchley Christopher Walter Monckton, 3rd Viscount Monckton of Brenchley is a British politician, public speaker, former newspaper editor and hereditary peer. Formerly a member of the Conservative Party, Monckton has been the Head of the Policy Unit for the UK Independence Party since November 2010. He was... |
2009 | Head of the Policy Unit 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... |
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| The Lord Hesketh | Member of the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms |
1955 | 1999 | 2011 | |||
| Damian Hockney Damian Hockney Damian Hockney is a British politician and the leader of the One London Party. He was a London Assembly member and a member of the Metropolitan Police Authority from 2004 to 2008.-Political background:... |
Member of the London Assembly London Assembly The London Assembly is an elected body, part of the Greater London Authority, that scrutinises the activities of the Mayor of London and has the power, with a two-thirds majority, to amend the mayor's annual budget. The assembly was established in 2000 and is headquartered at City Hall on the south... |
2004 London Assembly election, 2004 An election to the Assembly of London took place on 10 June 2004, along with the London mayoral election, 2004.The Assembly is elected by the Additional Member System. There are fourteen directly elected constituencies, nine of which were won by the Conservatives and five by the Labour Party... |
2008 London Assembly election, 2008 An election to the Assembly of London took place on 1 May 2008, along with the London mayoral election, 2008. The Conservatives gained 2 seats, Labour gained one seat, the Liberal Democrats lost two seats, and United Kingdom Independence Party or One London as they became were wiped out... - Defeated |
1999 | Defected to Veritas Veritas (political party) Veritas is a political party in the United Kingdom, formed in February 2005 at Hinckley golf club by politician-celebrity Robert Kilroy-Silk following a split from the United Kingdom Independence Party . Kilroy-Silk served as party leader from formation, through the 2005 General Election, until... in 2005 |
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| Peter Hulme-Cross Peter Hulme-Cross Peter Hulme-Cross is a politician in the United Kingdom and a former One London Party Member of the London Assembly. He was also a member of the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority.... |
Member of the London Assembly London Assembly The London Assembly is an elected body, part of the Greater London Authority, that scrutinises the activities of the Mayor of London and has the power, with a two-thirds majority, to amend the mayor's annual budget. The assembly was established in 2000 and is headquartered at City Hall on the south... |
2004 London Assembly election, 2004 An election to the Assembly of London took place on 10 June 2004, along with the London mayoral election, 2004.The Assembly is elected by the Additional Member System. There are fourteen directly elected constituencies, nine of which were won by the Conservatives and five by the Labour Party... |
2008 London Assembly election, 2008 An election to the Assembly of London took place on 1 May 2008, along with the London mayoral election, 2008. The Conservatives gained 2 seats, Labour gained one seat, the Liberal Democrats lost two seats, and United Kingdom Independence Party or One London as they became were wiped out... - Defeated |
1994 | Defected to Veritas Veritas (political party) Veritas is a political party in the United Kingdom, formed in February 2005 at Hinckley golf club by politician-celebrity Robert Kilroy-Silk following a split from the United Kingdom Independence Party . Kilroy-Silk served as party leader from formation, through the 2005 General Election, until... in 2005 |
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| Stuart Wheeler Stuart Wheeler Stuart Wheeler is a British businessman and politician. He made his fortune as the founder of the spread betting firm IG Index in 1974, but is best known for his political activism, being formerly a major donor to the Conservative Party and since 2011, has been treasurer of the United Kingdom... |
2011 | 2011 created UKIP Party Treasurer | |||||
| Labour Party Labour Party (UK) The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after... |
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| The Lord Stoddart of Swindon David Stoddart, Baron Stoddart of Swindon David Leonard Stoddart, Baron Stoddart of Swindon is a British independent Labour politician .-Political career:... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Swindon Swindon (UK Parliament constituency) Swindon was a parliamentary constituency in the town of Swindon in Wiltshire, England.It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from the 1918 general election until it was abolished for the 1997 general election.It was then replaced by the... and Member of the House of Lords House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster.... |
1970 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... & 1983 |
1983 United Kingdom general election, 1983 The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945... - Defeated |
2009 | Created a life peer Life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as... in 1983 and 2009 told voters to vote UKIP as he would be |
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| John Bufton John Bufton John Bufton , is a UKIP Member of the European Parliament for Wales.-Early life:He was educated at Elan Village Primary School and Llandrindod Wells High School, and joined the family haulage business before embarking on a career managing a residential care home for the elderly with the local... |
Councillor Councillor A councillor or councilor is a member of a local government council, such as a city council.Often in the United States, the title is councilman or councilwoman.-United Kingdom:... for Rhayader Rhayader Rhayader is a market town and community in Powys, Mid Wales. It has a population of 2,075, and is the first town on the banks of the River Wye, from its source on the Plynlimon range of the Cambrian Mountains.... Town Council Town council A town council is a democratically elected form of government for small municipalities or civil parishes. A council may serve as both the representative and executive branch.... and Powys County Council Powys County Council Powys County Council is the governing body for Powys, one of the administrative areas of Wales. It has three area committees — one for each of Brecknockshire, Radnorshire and Montgomeryshire to which the council delegates its functions. The council offices are located in Llandrindod... |
1987 | 2000 - Defeated | 2000 | MEP Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,... for Wales Wales (European Parliament constituency) Wales is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 4 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... (2009 European Parliament election, 2009 (United Kingdom) The European Parliament election was the United Kingdom's component of the 2009 European Parliament election, the voting for which was held on Thursday 4 June 2009, coinciding with the 2009 local elections in England. Most of the results of the election were announced on Sunday 7 June, after... - ) |
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| Robert Kilroy-Silk Robert Kilroy-Silk Robert Michael Kilroy-Silk is an English former politician, former independent Member of the European Parliament, and former television presenter, best known for his daytime talk show Kilroy. He has been a university lecturer and Labour Party Member of Parliament... |
MP Parliament of the United Kingdom The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London... for Knowsley North Knowsley North (UK Parliament constituency) Knowsley North was a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1983 until 1997. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post voting system.-History:... |
Feb 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,... |
1986 Knowsley North by-election, 1986 The Knowsley North by-election, 1986 was a parliamentary by-election held on 13 November 1986 for the British House of Commons constituency of Knowsley North.... - Resigned |
2004 | Member of the European Parliament Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,... for the East Midlands East Midlands (European Parliament constituency) East Midlands is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 5 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :... (2004-2009 European Parliament election, 2009 (United Kingdom) The European Parliament election was the United Kingdom's component of the 2009 European Parliament election, the voting for which was held on Thursday 4 June 2009, coinciding with the 2009 local elections in England. Most of the results of the election were announced on Sunday 7 June, after... ) - Retired and created Veritas Veritas In Roman mythology, Veritas, meaning truth, was the goddess of truth, a daughter of Saturn and the mother of Virtue. It was believed that she hid in the bottom of a holy well because she was so elusive. Her image is shown as a young virgin dressed in white... in 2005 |
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- A recent ConservativeHomeConservativeHomeConservative Home is a British political website started by Tim Montgomerie prior to the 2005 United Kingdom general election campaign, that aims to represent UK grassroots Conservative opinion.-Editors:...
survey revealed that 43% of surveyed members of the Conservative Party felt that UKIP was the closest party to their views (apart from the Conservative Party itself), with 66% either supporting or sympathising with the Better Off OutBetter Off OutBetter Off Out is the name of a non-party campaign run by The Freedom Association to call for the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union...
campaign. 12 Conservative, 8 DUP and 1 Labour MPs have signed the Better Off Out petition.
Patrons and supporters
The following are either well known supporters or patrons of UKIP:- Sir Ranulph Fiennes, 3rd BaronetRanulph FiennesSir Ranulph Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, 3rd Baronet, OBE , better known as Ranulph Fiennes, is a British adventurer and holder of several endurance records. He is also a prolific writer. Fiennes served in the British Army for eight years including a period on counter-insurgency service while...
- Sir Patrick MoorePatrick MooreSir Patrick Alfred Caldwell-Moore, CBE, FRS, FRAS is a British amateur astronomer who has attained prominent status in astronomy as a writer, researcher, radio commentator and television presenter of the subject, and who is credited as having done more than any other person to raise the profile of...
- Sir Stirling MossStirling MossSir Stirling Craufurd Moss, OBE FIE is a former racing driver from England...
- Joan CollinsJoan CollinsJoan Henrietta Collins, OBE , is an English actress, author, and columnist. Born in Paddington and raised in Maida Vale, Collins grew up during the Second World War. At the age of nine, she made her stage debut in A Doll's House and after attending school, she was classically trained as an actress...
- Edward FoxEdward Fox (actor)Edward Charles Morice Fox, OBE is an English stage, film and television actor.He is generally associated with portraying the role of the upper-class Englishman, such as the title character in the film The Day of the Jackal and King Edward VIII in the serial Edward & Mrs...
- Simon HefferSimon HefferSimon James Heffer is a British journalist, columnist and writer.-Education:Heffer was educated at King Edward VI Grammar School in Chelmsford and Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.-Career:...
- Frank MaloneyFrank MaloneyFrank Maloney is a boxing manager and promoter and United Kingdom Independence Party politician. He is most famous for managing Lennox Lewis to the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship of the World.-Early life:...
- Lord Tebbit (officially a member of the Conservative Party, has backed UKIP in some elections).
- Geoffrey BoycottGeoffrey BoycottGeoffrey Boycott OBE is a former Yorkshire and England cricketer. In a prolific and sometimes controversial playing career from 1962 to 1986, Boycott established himself as one of England's most successful opening batsmen...
- David ProwseDavid ProwseDavid Prowse, MBE is an English former bodybuilder, weightlifter and actor, most widely known for playing the role of Darth Vader in physical form. In Britain, he is also remembered as having played the Green Cross Code man...
- Frank CarsonFrank CarsonFrank Carson is a Northern Irish comedian and actor, best known on television in series such as The Comedians and Tiswas.-Early life:...
- Rustie LeeRustie LeeRustie Lee is a television chef and actress in the United Kingdom, most famous for her appearances in the 1980s on morning station, TV-am. She was born in Jamaica, but moved to Birmingham with her family as a child. Following her successful stint as a chef on TV-am in 1983, Lee took over from...
- Pat CondellPat CondellPatrick Condell is an Irish-English writer, political commentator, comedian, UKIP patron and atheist internet personality. He performed alternative comedy shows during the 1980s and 1990s in the United Kingdom, and won a Time Out Comedy Award in 1991...
- Count Nikolai Dmitrievich Tolstoy-MiloslavskNikolai TolstoyCount Nikolai Dmitrievich Tolstoy-Miloslavsky is an Anglo-Russian historian and author who writes under the name Nikolai Tolstoy. A member of the prominent Tolstoy family, he is of part Russian descent and is the stepson of the author Patrick O'Brian...
- Vladimir BukovskyVladimir BukovskyVladimir Konstantinovich Bukovsky is a leading member of the dissident movement of the 1960s and 1970s, writer, neurophysiologist, and political activist....
- Paul Sykes
- The late Sir Dai Llewellyn, 4th BaronetDai LlewellynSir David St Vincent "Dai" Llewellyn, 4th Baronet was a Welsh socialite. He was born in Aberdare, the son of 1952 Summer Olympics gold medallist showjumper Sir Harry Llewellyn, 3rd Baronet and the Hon Christine de Saumarez, who was the daughter of the 5th Baron de Saumarez, a family from Guernsey...
- The late Vice AdmiralVice AdmiralVice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...
Sir Louis Le BaillyLouis Le BaillyVice Admiral Sir Louis Edward Stewart Holland Le Bailly KBE, CB was a Royal Navy officer who became Director-General of Intelligence and later a writer.-Naval career:...