An open letter from Nick Lowles - Give one hour to stop the BNP!

Dear reader,

I am writing this open letter to you because I need your help. With the European election only a few weeks away it is absolutely vital that we all do what we can to stop the BNP from winning seats in the European Parliament. A significant BNP victory would herald the era of four-party politics and the BNP, with its leaders who peddle race hate, division and fear, would become a lasting national threat, and one that will play out in the ballot box and in our communities.

But they need not win. This election is being contested under proportional representation and so every vote counts. It is also a turnout election so we need everyone who opposes the BNP’s politics of hate to vote and convince others around them to vote.

This month Searchlight is launching its “Donate an hour” initiative. We are asking all our readers and supporters to give us a minimum of one hour to help us stop the BNP. Towards the end of this letter I will give you five ways you can help stop the BNP.

We are facing the biggest political challenge to date but if everyone who opposes the BNP’s message of hate does something then we can stop them.

The BNP threat

The threat from the British National Party in the forthcoming European election is very real. With just a small increase in the share of the vote the party secured at the last European election in 2004, the BNP could win three or more seats. Let there be no misunderstanding, a substantial breakthrough in the European election would change the British political landscape for years to come.

And it would change for the worse.

Each MEP is entitled to around £250,000 a year for staff and office support. Rather than benefiting voters in the region, the BNP would employ organisers to push its racist agenda in local and national elections.

That’s exactly what it has done in London, where its representative on the London Assembly employs two people, the party’s deputy leader, Simon Darby, who lives in Wales, and its Essex organiser Emma Colgate, who lives in Thurrock.

More importantly, a significant BNP breakthrough would fundamentally change the BNP’s fortunes and our ability to stop them. They would achieve a respectability and credibility that they can now only dream of. They would become regular fixtures on news programmes and we would no longer be able to pressurise the authorities to stop their activities.

As MEPs, they would be able to intervene on any issue and in any community they wish. We only have to look back to Oldham a few years ago to see how this can play out on the streets, winding up communities and pitting neighbour against neighbour. Increased tensions, fears and violence will likely follow.

Nick Griffin, leader of the BNP, needs to increase his 2004 vote in the North West from 6.4% to just 8.5%. Simon Darby only has to increase the BNP’s 7.5% vote in 2004 to 10.5% to take a seat in the West Midlands. And Andrew Brons requires his share of the vote to grow from 8% to 10.5% to take a seat in Yorkshire and The Humber.

The BNP even pose a threat in the East Midlands and London. They need to double their 6.5% vote in the East Midlands but with 26% of the electorate having voted for the UK Independence Party in 2004, which is now a mere shadow of its former self, this is not unfeasible. The BNP might only have polled 5.3% in London in last year’s London Assembly election but this could easily rise to the necessary 8.5% if inner London, which came out strongly for Ken Livingstone and Labour 12 months ago, remains at home this time.

Turnout will be a major factor.

Few people appear interested in the European election. A poll taken towards the end of last year found only 3% even knew that there was an election this year at all. Most people who are interested probably dislike the EU all the same.

In 2004 the BNP was prevented from winning through a high turnout, caused largely by all-out elections in the Metropolitan authorities in the North and West Midlands on the same day, and a huge vote for the UKIP. Neither of these factors are likely to benefit us this time. With no local elections in the urban areas of the North West, Yorkshire and The Humber and the West Midlands, turnout is likely to plummet.

In 1999, when the European elections was held without other elections at the same time, turnout nationally was just 23%. It was even worse in the North West, where the biggest BNP risk is. Twelve of the 20 local authorities with the lowest turnout were in Greater Manchester and Merseyside, with just 13% of people voting in Liverpool.

If there is anything like a repeat of this turnout then we have little hope of stopping the BNP. One trade unionist in Burnley put it very succinctly at a recent meeting. If only one million of the five million registered voters in the North West bother to vote then Nick Griffin will only need 90,000 votes to get elected. And they will certainly get this.

If two million people bother to vote, achieving a 40% turnout, then the BNP will need 180,000 votes. Suddenly it becomes more difficult for them. If there is a 50% turnout then the BNP will need 225,000, which surely is beyond their reach.

Turnout is absolutely crucial. In a short election campaign we will try to depress the BNP vote but that is far more difficult, and time consuming, than turning out our anti-BNP vote. And this has to be our crucial task. A turnout of less than 30% and it will be virtually impossible to stop the BNP from winning seats.

Mobilising

It is against this backdrop that the HOPE not hate campaign is being organised. It will be our biggest and most sophisticated campaign to date. During May we are organising days of action and mass leafleting all across the country. So far we have activities organised in over 70 local authority areas, with more to be confirmed. Some will be small events, with just a handful of people, but others will mobilise hundreds. There is now a competition between Manchester and Liverpool for who can put more people on the street on 16 May. Wigan has set itself a target of delivering 50,000 newspapers and Barking and Dagenham is aiming for more than 250 people to take part in its day of action.

However, we also recognise that we alone cannot defeat the BNP. The HOPE not hate campaign is working with a number of partners who have their own networks, among them trade unions and faith groups. If the trade unions can increase polling day turnout among their 750,000 members in the North West they can really influence the outcome. If these trade unionists can persuade their partners to vote, that will push up the turnout even further.

We are working with all the main trade unions, often customising specific literature with messages that are pertinent to their members.

Faith groups will be crucial. They have a credibility and authority in many of the communities where local politicians have disengaged. In Greater Manchester alone, the Anglican Church has over 500 full-time employees and a similar number of part-time workers, and the church as a whole has the largest community outreach project in the country. Give these people the arguments and tools to take the message to their congregations and we are really beginning to motor.

The Jewish community is already organising. In parts of north London turnout among Jewish voters in 2008 was almost 80%, largely mobilised based on the desire to defeat the BNP. A similar campaign in Manchester and Leeds is being organised and will obviously boost our vote.

High stakes

The stakes have never been higher. I’m presuming that you, as a reader of Searchlight, share my opposition to the BNP and its politics of hate. But now I must ask you to do a little bit more. If we are to defeat the BNP then we must all play a role, and we must do it now.

We have to say to ourselves, and our friends: If not me, who? If not now, when?

This is why I am asking you to donate a minimum one hour to fight the BNP. That’s my ask to you and I hope it will be your ask to your friends and family.

Many of you could probably donate far more than an hour to the campaign, but even if it is only one hour it can make a difference.

One hour is enough time to deliver 150-200 leaflets or newspapers. It is enough time to address a union branch meeting or send an email to all your friends and family explaining why you are voting in this election and to urge them to do the same.

If we all gave just one hour then we can do an enormous amount. If every Searchlight reader delivered at least 150-200 leaflets then over a million could be distributed. This could be doubled if we all found one other person to do it as well. This would be multiplied several times over if the 22,000 on our growing HOPE not hate email list also committed an hour.

And if everyone donated just two hours during May then really anything is possible.

We are building something very special this year at the HOPE not hate campaign. We are combining traditional anti-fascist campaigning with community organising. We are using new technology to bring in tens of thousands of new activists into the campaign in a way that the political parties cannot. We are doing all this because the threat is so real.

I hope you will give me the hour and in the process play your part in the HOPE not hate campaign. Please don’t wake up on 5 June thinking there was one more thing you could have done.

Yours in solidarity

Nick Lowles

Please get involved by visiting http://www.hopenothate.org.uk

Searchlight

Why YOU should join us on the march and parade on June 21st - leading political and cultural figures speak out!

Pete Doherty, a long-time suporter of LMHR, said: “There will be no passage of evil through these isles without a proper, good struggle. This island has always been a melting pot and personally I am 100% mongrel in the great dog stew of history. Bona fide scouse, London Irish, Jew, Geordie, BiloRussian. Closed borders are like closed minds. What of humanity’s horizons? How infinite are they or how barricaded are they? Racism is upon us and let us not forget it is still within living memory that six million people died in gas chambers because of a hateful ideology.”

Gurinder Chadha, celebrated Director of films like Bend it Like Beckham, said: “Britain is a fantastic place made up of a wonderful mix of people. There is no room in our society for small-minded, small-thinking, racist people. That is why I’m supporting the march on the 21st”

Diane Abbott MP said: “The BNP are a Party of xenophobia, racism, homophobia and sexism. But their election to the Greater London Authority in May shows that they are capable of fooling ordinary people into believing they stand for a better Britain. The only way to beat the BNP is to show people that the BNP’s vision for Britain would take us back to the dark ages. We must reach out and encourage all communities to use their voice and their vote to protect multi-cultural Britain.

Ben Summerskill of gay rights group Stonewall said: “Less than three years after Jody Dobrowski was kicked to death in London just for being gay, no one should forget that extremism still thrives unless it’s challenged. Decent people should stand shoulder to shoulder to prevent extremists from terrorizing Britain’s minority communities.”

Glyn Ford MEP said - ‘The results of the GLA elections, where for the first time a BNP candidate was elected, show us that we must have a sustained campaign to block Nick Griffin and the BNP in next year’s Euro Elections.”

Dawn Butler MP said-It is important that we continue to come together to fight the scourge of fascism and racism. This national demonstration and carnival parade of Unite Against Fascism and Love Music Hate Racism sends out a loud message to organisations like the BNP that we will not tolerate groups that promote hatred and deny the diversity of our society.”

Dr Abdul Bari, Muslim Council of Britain said- “The fascist BNP are targeting Muslims and we should all stand together as a united community against those who would use racism to divide us. Multiculturalism and diversity provide richness in British society and vitality. Though the BNP are targeting Muslims, they are a threat to us all. We have to stand together against Islamophobia.”

Billy Hayes, Communication Workers Union, General Secretary said - “I am glad to be playing my part in this year’s National March Against Fascism and Racism. The election of the first BNP candidate in the GLA elections was a disgrace and we need to show our opposition to this on the streets of London on 21st June!!

Christine Blower, National Union of Teachers, Acting General Secretary said - “Teachers are alive to the damage to children’s’ lives that can be caused by those who preach racism or fascism. There should never be place for such views in our classrooms or, for that matter, in the wider community. The time is right to take to the streets, celebrate our diversity and ‘NO’ to fascists and racists”.

Mark Serwotka, Public and Commercial Services Union, General Secretary said - “We cannot sit by and let the BNP pass themselves off as respectable politicians. They are fascists and votes they got in May are a warning to us all. We must oppose them in our workplaces, our schools and colleges and our streets. The bigger the demonstration on 21st June, the better the start to that campaign.”

Steve Hart, Unite the union , Regional Secretary for London said: ” We need to be aware that racism isn’t just about the BNP. It is a matter that goes on in people’s lives each day. We need to address the issues that cause racism. Issues like poor housing, poor wages and poor working conditions. The BNP distracts people from the real issues and turns people against each other. Unite campaigns everyday to fight the causes of racism. Being a part of a trade union gives people the strength in numbers they need to fight racism”

Jerry Bartlett , NASUWT Teaching Union, Deputy General Secretary said - The demonstration on the 21 June is crucial. NASUWT supports Unite Against Fascism and Love Music Hate Racism in wanting to see tens of thousands of committed anti-racists on the street to send a clear message to the BNP and other fascists that their messages of hate are not welcome in our multi cultural and diverse society.

Tony Benn said - “If we stand together we can protect all the communities in Britain from racism and from racist attacks. That is what this march is all about. This is the right thing to do.”

Weyman Bennett, Unite Against Fascism’s National Joint Secretary said- ” The BNP is not a legitimate political party, it’s Leader Nick Griffin is a convicted Holocaust denier and a life long supporter of fascist and racist groups. We have to act now to stop them. In the day the fascist BNP wear suits and stand in elections but at night they carry out racist and bigoted attacks. The fascists tell lies in order to build, we must expose them for what they are - Nazis want to repeat the Holocaust in the 21st Century.”

Love Music Hate Racism

Assembly point details, coaches, etc

BNP set to falter in bid to clinch 40 more seats

The British National party performed worse than it expected in overnight election results despite gains in the Midlands, northern England and Essex.

It gained eight seats but appeared to be falling well short of its leaders' target of 40 new councillors with 100 of 159 councils declared. It may still make gains in the London assembly elections due to declare later.

Despite the collapse of Labour's support, early indications show the BNP's share of the vote fell in the wards they contested. In Sandwell in the Midlands, where they secured 33% of the vote two years ago, they got 17% this time.

"In the party's heartlands, it looks as though the share of the vote has dropped which, with the backdrop of Labour's performance, is encouraging," said Nick Lowles from the anti-racist organisation, Searchlight.

"And although there have been eight gains so far that is below what they were predicting, especially in places where they have stood before."

The number of BNP councillors is expected to increase during the day as results come in from councils such as Stoke and in Yorkshire and north-west England.

The BNP leadership says it expects to win up to three seats on the London Assembly when the votes are declared this afternoon. However, early reports of high turnout across the capital may make this less likely.

The Guardian

Lancaster Unity "live" election coverage

With the local elections well underway we'd like to ask Unity regulars to help us bring our visitors the best coverage possible.

From close of polls on May 1st Lancaster Unity will be updating "live" throughout the night with results and news. Comment moderation will be almost instant.

Anybody attending a count can send us results by email from mobile or regular email. Even if you aren't attending a count, but know somebody you can trust who is and who can transmit results to you, that's fine.


Television and radio

Local television and radio coverage will continue for much of the night in most regions and will give more detailed coverage of BNP results than the national programmes. We'd like you to keep an eye on what the media are saying in your locality and get the news - no matter how trivial - to us.


Internet

Some local council websites and forums devoted to politics will be updating throughout the night. As we at Lancaster Unity are going to be very busy, we need supporters to keep an eye on them - including BNP websites and Stormfront.


After the election

Results will continue to come in throughout Friday, and so will news concerning the BNP's performance. Help to keep us up to date!

The temporary email address we've set up for you to get in touch is elections@unitywebring.com

Come along to keep us company at Lancaster Unity on Thursday night - and don't forget to vote yourself!!

Help Searchlight to beat the BNP in London!

Let’s vote for our London

This month Searchlight launches its campaign to stop the British National Party from winning seats in the London Assembly. Our objectives are simple. We need to prevent the BNP from gaining the 5% in the London list vote that would give it one seat, the 8% which would gain it two and the 11% which would see the party win three.

Over the next three months we will undertake our largest, most targeted and sophisticated campaign to date.

We will adapt the lessons from recent campaigns across the country and bring in new techniques that have been pioneered in the United States.

Given the size of the London constituency, with around 5.3 million potential voters, there will be a much bigger emphasis on internet and email campaigning, though this will not come at the expense of community work, especially the enthusing of minority communities and the mobilisation of faith communities.

There must be no pretending that our task is straightforward. In last May’s local elections the BNP polled 14.7% in the 742 wards it contested across the country. The highest average regional vote was in the Eastern region where the party achieved 19% of the vote in the 65 wards contested. The lowest regional vote was 11.1% in the South West, where the BNP fielded 34 candidates. If even its lowest regional average was replicated in London then the BNP would be on the verge of winning three seats on the Assembly.

The BNP is hopeful of success. In the 2006 local elections the party polled 41% in the wards it contested in Barking and Dagenham. It gained councillors in Havering and Redbridge, and overall it averaged 25% of the vote in the 27 wards it contested.

Its prospects will also be boosted by the virtual collapse of the UK Independence Party, whose London Assembly representatives now sit as the One London party. In the last London Assembly elections, contested in 2004 on the same day as the European elections, the UKIP polled 8.8% of the London list vote. This support is now up for grabs and research has indicated that much of it may cross to the BNP.

It is no wonder then that the BNP is prioritising London this year. The region has so far not been affected by the internal party feuds and Nick Griffin, the party leader, knows that even one place on the London Assembly will attract more media attention than several council election victories around the country.

The election will also be an important dry run for next year’s all-important European elections. Victory here, rather than in London on its own, would take the BNP out of the political margins. Each MEP would receive at least £200,000 a year in salary and allowances, so would be able to employ several BNP members as staff, but just as importantly MEPs would give the fascists a credibility they currently do not have.

Mobilising the majority

So, given all of the above, is it certain the BNP will win? Absolutely not, but we will only be successful in preventing a BNP victory if we can launch the biggest anti-BNP campaign to date. And that means people getting active and increasing turnout.

As our table below shows, increasing the turnout will make it significantly harder for the BNP. So increasing the turnout is our key priority.

London has particular groups that need to be mobilised. One third of Londoners are immigrants or the children of immigrants and this figures rises greatly if you include people who have moved into the capital from other parts of the UK.

The capital is far more socially liberal and tolerant than other parts of the UK. Research has shown repeatedly that Londoners are 20% more liberal in their social attitudes than people in other regions.

Many Londoners love London precisely because of its diversity. It is a “World in One City”, a fact that gave us the Olympics and gives it an identity unlike anywhere else. Warts and all, it is the most multicultural city in the world.

We cannot take it for granted that our Londoners will come out and vote. They will need to be reminded, cajoled and encouraged. There is genuine outrage and horror among so many ordinary people when the threat of the BNP is explained. However, often it is expressed only when the threat is explained and over the next couple of months it is vital that anti-fascists get to speak to as many people and groups as possible.

The internet will be vital in this. There are over four million people registered to vote in London. There are another million who are of voting age but are not yet registered. It would be foolhardy to believe that we can speak to anything but a fraction of these people so the internet and email networks provide the best way to spread our message more widely.

Searchlight is fortunate to be able to draw on the skills of political and community campaigners in the United States. They have shared their experiences, provided us with free software and given us advice about internet campaigning. Anyone who has visited our updated website or received one of our weekly email bulletins has, we hope, noticed improvements in recent weeks.

Our changes appear to be paying dividends. In December over 34,000 unique users (different computers) visited our Stop the BNP site, viewing over 400,000 pages. This was a massive increase over previous months and can only be considered a taster for the real campaign over the next few weeks.

Welcome

Searchlight is kicking off its London effort later this month with a “Welcome” campaign. Our opening salvo is “Welcome the stranger you once were”. It is an attempt to remind people that London is a city of immigration, be it from abroad or from other parts of the UK.

It is also intended to be a positive reminder that the diversity of London is something to celebrate. It is a world in one city and most of us love it for that very reason.

This is only the start. Searchlight and its union, faith and community partners have drawn up a three-month rolling programme of action that will take us to polling day. Each activity will hopefully lead neatly into the next and all the time we hope to be raising the profile of our campaign and the importance of voting for our London.

Over the weekend of 15-16 March we will hold activities across the capital. From attending church services to running town centre stalls, mass leafleting of estates to community meetings, there will be something for every-one to do. In the process we hope to reach out to hun-dreds of thousands of people right across London.

But none of this can happen without your help. Searchlight has thousands of readers in London and there is a role for everyone. Some people might be prepared to deliver leaflets or staff Hope not Hate stalls in shopping centres, others might prefer to work quietly within their own community networks. Yet others may be able to do none of these but could still spread the word to their friends and family by email.

Searchlight cannot stress the importance of the London elections enough. A significant BNP break-through here will give the party a major platform for the European elections. We urge all of our readers to do whatever they can to get involved in the campaign.

To find out more please visit our campaign site http://www.hopenothate.org.uk/london/

Searchlight

Call for full investigation into BNP finances

Investigations into the British National Party’s finances by the BBC and Searchlight have revealed the sheer incompetence of the Electoral Commission. The Commission, which oversees political party finances, has repeatedly failed to investigate properly a series of allegations of BNP wrongdoing.

In 2005 the BNP’s former treasurer, John Brayshaw, wrote to the Commission pointing out that he had refused to sign off the BNP’s accounts because he had not been given access to all the records he needed to see and had resigned after a number of irregularities had come to light. Yet the Electoral Commission said it had no reason to believe a breach of the party funding law had taken place.

It is illegal for political parties to accept any donations of more than £200 from individuals who are not registered to vote in the UK. In June 2005 Searchlight wrote to the Electoral Commission drawing attention to a blatant attempt by Nick Griffin, the leader of the BNP, to solicit large US donations to the BNP by channelling them through a BNP front group called Civil Liberty. Again the Electoral Commission did not consider that any breach had occurred.

Searchlight wrote again to the Electoral Commission in May 2006 about another attempt to channel overseas donations of more than £200 through Civil Liberty. Although the Electoral Commission told us that our complaint would be investigated, we heard nothing more.

Searchlight demands that the Electoral Commission mounts a proper investigation into the BNP taking account of the evidence uncovered by Searchlight and the BBC Radio 4’s File on 4 programme broadcast on 12 February, as well as the matters raised by Jon Cruddas, MP for Dagenham, in an adjournment debate in the House of Commons on 18 December 2007, which he subsequently reported to the Electoral Commission and the Metropolitan Police. They include:

John Brayshaw’s statement about irregularities while he was BNP treasurer and the shredding of BNP financial documents.

The BNP’s attempts on more than one occasion to solicit overseas donations via Civil Liberty.

The fact that the only two officers of Civil Liberty were both BNP officers, Civil Liberty’s PO Box address is the same as that of the BNP’s North East region and there is no evidence that Civil Liberty has given legal support to anyone who is not a member of the BNP.

The statement to File on 4 by Adrian Davies, a barrister who has often represented the BNP, that he saw people queuing up to give cash to Griffin at a rightwing conference in the USA.

The unusual pattern of large donations that the BNP has reported to the Electoral Commission.

The verdict of Chris Makin, a forensic accountant engaged by File on 4, on the BNP’s accounts.

The fact that the BNP never submitted any accounts to the Electoral Commission for the last three months of 2001.

If the Electoral Commission fails once again to investigate the BNP fully, it rests with Parliament to initiate a thorough review of how the Electoral Commission exercises its role.

Stop The BNP