Tory rebel Bob Spink becomes Ukip's first MP !!!!

Britannist · 22-04-2008, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrew Constantine

Britannist: I confirm that the Free England Party would not wish to stand against Bob Spink in his capacity as UKIP's first MP. Indeed, I will personally commend and postively encourage all English nationalists to support his campaign for re-election. I hope Mr Spink will welcome to his campaign we English nationalists with our English flags in evidence, supporting him.

Thank you, Andrew, for your speedy and characteristically generous reply.

Both David (now Lord) Owen and George Galloway MP quit their party to join new and much smaller parties - and both managed to get re-elected as candidates for those small parties (SDP and the Respect Party respectively).

UKIP members up and down the land will be hoping that Mr. Bob Spink, UKIP MP, will also retain his seat under the UKIP banner when the next General Election takes place.

I wonder if Mr. Spink might want to stand as a UKIP candidate in next year's EU Election too.

Richard Allen · 22-04-2008, 10:04 AM

Fantastic news for UKIP. Well done to those people who convinced Bob to join us.

GreenerWorld · 22-04-2008, 10:08 AM

Sober analysis suggests this will be an uphill struggle for UKIP to hold the seat, but I would not rule this out. 7.5% is a decent vote and there will no doubt be a vote for Spink based on his record and views. You will certainly poll over 20%.

Expect both the Tories and the BNP to put in considerable effort into preventing you winning the seat, and Labour will now treat it as a marginal as well, hoping to come through the middle by holding a 30% share of the vote, in case the UKIP and Tory vote splits evenly at around 28%.

In terms of timing in London, it is about perfect. I hope UKIP up their Assembly campaign and get news of their first MP out to the boroughs. There was a danger of some of this vote sliding towards the BNP, but I think if UKIP can raise their game between now and election day, they can still win a seat.

Britannist · 22-04-2008, 10:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GreenerWorld

Sober analysis suggests this will be an uphill struggle for UKIP to hold the seat.

I get the impression from a previous posting you made to this forum that you are a supporter of the leftist pro-EU Green Party. A party which has precisely how many MPs in the Commons? None is the answer.

"Sober analysis" (your words) suggests that Mr. Bob Spink MP starts off as UKIP MP for Castle Point in a better position than did Lord Owen and George Galloway MP after they had quit Labour to stand as candidates for small parties.

George Galloway fought (and won) Bethnal Green for the Respect Party at the last General Election. Lord (David) Owen fought (and won) Plymouth-Devonport for the SDP in 1983 and 1987.

Both Lord Owen and Mr. Galloway fought those seats and won them for the SDP and Respect respectively with those new small parties having no record of fighting those constituencies before they were candidates for those small parties. In other words - they both started from 'zero' when they quit Labour and stood for the SDP and the Respect Party respectively.

At Castle Point (Canvey Island/South Essex), Mr. Spink represents a seat where thousands of people voted UKIP at the last General Election and where a clear majority of voters in the constituency share his concerns about the EU.

Mr. Spink starts off as UKIP MP for Castle Point in a better position than did Lord Owen as SDP candidate (June 1983) or as George Galloway MP did as a Respect Party candidate (May 2005). UKIP had a track-record of fighting a General Election at Castle Point - that was not the case with the SDP and the Respect Party in 1983 and 2005 in the seats of Lord Owen and Mr. George Galloway MP.

If those two can win the first time their small parties contested the seats they went on to represent in the Commons after they quit Labour - Mr. Spink MP can win for UKIP in a seat where UKIP already has experience of fighting a General Election.

Britannist · 22-04-2008, 11:01 AM

Ukip gets its first MP as former Tory defects | Politics | guardian.co.uk

Anthony Butcher · 22-04-2008, 11:02 AM

Guardian text in full:

Quote:

The UK Independence party gained its first member of parliament today after former Tory MP Bob Spink announced he had joined its ranks just days before the local elections.
Spink accused the Conservative party, which expelled him last month, of being "dishonest" with the public over its policies on Europe.
He also insisted that despite crossing the floor, there was no need for a byelection in his Castle Point, Essex, constituency.
"I was elected as Bob Spink ... I work hard for my constituents and I will continue to do so," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
He claimed that in his actions, he was "following to the letter every word" of his manifesto and appealed to political parties to do same, including the Tory party.
"They heap criticism on other parties for bringing (the EU reform treaty) forward, and yet they refuse point blank to do anything about it if they get power," he added.
"That is a dishonest position to hold with the public."
Spink is a controversial figure, who fell out with the Tory leadership after bitter confrontations with his local constituency party.
He was first elected to parliament in 1992, losing his seat in 1997 but then regaining it in 2001.
Spink stressed that he planned to continue in elected politics "for a long time".
In a statement released by Ukip, Spink said: "I am delighted to join the Ukip team, helping to fight for Britain's interests in Europe and for better policy on the issues that really matter to people.
"I have been increasingly disappointed with the Tory party's failure to be honest with the public on a wide range of issues like pensions, crime, immigration and defence, which is why I voted against the Tory whip so often in recent years and finally resigned the whip last month."
Ukip's leader, Nigel Farage, said: "I am delighted to welcome the hard-working and deeply principled Bob Spink as our first member of parliament.
Ukip peer Lord Willoughby de Broke added: "I am thrilled that Ukip now has a representative in the House of Commons. I look forward to working with him to further our programme of leaving the EU."

mkpdavies · 22-04-2008, 11:24 AM

UKIP should be celebrating this BIG TIME.

How long has the party been waiting for this day? Now it has a full set! MPs, MEPs, Councilors and Lords.

There is no excuse for the media to ignore UKIP now. I am personally overjoyed at this news and pray that UKIP make the best use of this!

For starters, the party leadership should be allocating a decent budget and rallying troops to start an immediete and sustained campaign to make sure Spink is kept in his seat.

Farage can now stick this feather in his cap too. When people ask what has he acheived in his short time as leader, he can now say two Lords and the holy grail an MP. This is 100% down to his work with BOO, that some people attacked him for. Come on, let's have some humility here. Farage has played a blinder and secured UKIP an MP that brings the party major credibility. Now follow it up with a stategy to make full use of this and make sure he has the BEST chance of winning at the next GE.

TomPhil · 22-04-2008, 11:42 AM

This is a major credibility boost for UKIP, and is brilliant news. This will go down as one of the major milestones in UKIP history.

While the odds are perhaps stacked against Spink being re-elected at the next election, the odds of him being re-elected are now far better than the odds would otherwise have been of a UKIP candidate getting elected, and if he does get re-elected, that will be another major boost for UKIP.

I notice that the BBC have not categorised it amongst their "top stories" on their website. What's the betting that had he defected to, say, the Green Party, it would have been the top story?

Anthony Butcher · 22-04-2008, 12:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TomPhil

I notice that the BBC have not categorised it amongst their "top stories" on their website. What's the betting that had he defected to, say, the Green Party, it would have been the top story?

Is the word 'defected' accurate? He had the whip withdrawn, so he was an independent MP.

Was he still a Conservative party member? That could probably count as defection.

To be fair, someone defecting from/leaving the Tory party is huge political news. An independent joining a minor party (UKIP, Greens etc) is just news. All that matters in the modern media is conflict amongst famous political personalities. Hence the value of the news is only relative to how embarrassing it is for Cameron, Clegg or Brown. If he had immediately left the Tories and gone straight to UKIP, it would have been much bigger news.

mkpdavies · 22-04-2008, 12:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anthony Butcher

Is the word 'defected' accurate? He had the whip withdrawn, so he was an independent MP.

Was he still a Conservative party member? That could probably count as defection.

To be fair, someone defecting from/leaving the Tory party is huge political news. An independent joining a minor party (UKIP, Greens etc) is just news. All that matters in the modern media is conflict amongst famous political personalities. Hence the value of the news is only relative to how embarrassing it is for Cameron, Clegg or Brown. If he had immediately left the Tories and gone straight to UKIP, it would have been much bigger news.

He resigned the whip actually. Thus defecting is the right word.

22-04-2008, 11:01 AM	#55 (permalink)
Britannist Uber Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: London Posts: 22,896	UKIP MP Mr. Bob Spink Ukip gets its first MP as former Tory defects \| Politics \| guardian.co.uk

22-04-2008, 11:24 AM	#57 (permalink)
mkpdavies Uber Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Woking Posts: 30,604	UKIP should be celebrating this BIG TIME. How long has the party been waiting for this day? Now it has a full set! MPs, MEPs, Councilors and Lords. There is no excuse for the media to ignore UKIP now. I am personally overjoyed at this news and pray that UKIP make the best use of this! For starters, the party leadership should be allocating a decent budget and rallying troops to start an immediete and sustained campaign to make sure Spink is kept in his seat. Farage can now stick this feather in his cap too. When people ask what has he acheived in his short time as leader, he can now say two Lords and the holy grail an MP. This is 100% down to his work with BOO, that some people attacked him for. Come on, let's have some humility here. Farage has played a blinder and secured UKIP an MP that brings the party major credibility. Now follow it up with a stategy to make full use of this and make sure he has the BEST chance of winning at the next GE. __________________ http://brits4ronpaul.blogspot.com/ http://wokinglibertarians.blogspot.com/ http://lpuk.org My ignore list Labour, Blue Labour, Lib Dems

22-04-2008, 11:42 AM	#58 (permalink)
TomPhil Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Stockport Posts: 498 Party: UKIP	This is a major credibility boost for UKIP, and is brilliant news. This will go down as one of the major milestones in UKIP history. While the odds are perhaps stacked against Spink being re-elected at the next election, the odds of him being re-elected are now far better than the odds would otherwise have been of a UKIP candidate getting elected, and if he does get re-elected, that will be another major boost for UKIP. I notice that the BBC have not categorised it amongst their "top stories" on their website. What's the betting that had he defected to, say, the Green Party, it would have been the top story? __________________ "A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government." In Labour we trusted and now we are busted... again. It's the economy, stupid.

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22-04-2008, 10:04 AM	#52 (permalink)
Richard Allen Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 569	Fantastic news for UKIP. Well done to those people who convinced Bob to join us.

22-04-2008, 10:08 AM	#53 (permalink)
GreenerWorld Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 23	Sober analysis suggests this will be an uphill struggle for UKIP to hold the seat, but I would not rule this out. 7.5% is a decent vote and there will no doubt be a vote for Spink based on his record and views. You will certainly poll over 20%. Expect both the Tories and the BNP to put in considerable effort into preventing you winning the seat, and Labour will now treat it as a marginal as well, hoping to come through the middle by holding a 30% share of the vote, in case the UKIP and Tory vote splits evenly at around 28%. In terms of timing in London, it is about perfect. I hope UKIP up their Assembly campaign and get news of their first MP out to the boroughs. There was a danger of some of this vote sliding towards the BNP, but I think if UKIP can raise their game between now and election day, they can still win a seat.