UKIP Cranham candidate Ben Buckland chats to voters
Local council elections have been taking place elsewhere in the UK, so we haven’t been so busy with them in our necks of the woods. So when Evelyn ward in Lewisham came up and then Cranham, Essex a few of us decided we would try to help. Lewisham’s Evelyn Ward was not great for us – very Labour – but the local candidate was working very hard, having produced leaflets and getting out every day to leaflet.
Labour still got in but it wasn’t for the want of trying. And by all accounts he had some very positive conversations in the area about the loss of traditional family values and the sexualisation of children in schools with early sex education and the teaching of the LGBTQ agenda. There is an audience there for us but of course the demographics are changing rapidly…. And I shuddered when I recalled what happened at the election hustings in Lewisham East last year…
However, the by-election in Cranham, Essex was much more favourable for us. UKIP have done well in Essex for many years, and the demographics there are very much in our favour. It’s just outside Upminster, with just a small shopping area, and very residential – private and council houses. Lots of pretty gardens and wide streets. Very green and very quiet with traditional pubs. The atmosphere there is overwhelmingly English – in a calm, everyday, going-about-our-business-as-we-always-have sort of way.
It was a trauma to get there due to train engineering works but worth it when we arrived. We met the candidate in the pub and talked about the area. It is actually just over 97% white British, and 75% describe themselves as Christian – the highest in London. No wonder it reminded me of the England I knew as a very small child. The London I know now has completely changed. But Cranham is still more like a suburban village. Definitely ‘working class’ for want of a better description, but in the old school sort of way, where people actually do work and try to improve their lot.
We leafleted for a few hours and managed to have a few conversations. Most people were very friendly. The most popular candidate seemed to be the rep from the Residents Association – ‘Linda’ was the answer we got when asking how they would vote. Shame not to hear ‘UKIP’ but still quite sweet.
Many were very supportive of Brexit and some promised to vote for us. Someone who helped on another day was told ‘you’ve got to save us’. We’re trying! One thing most agreed with us on was they were disgusted with the government, they were worried about freedom of speech and political correctness and they hated being told what to say, do and think. And they certainly didn’t want the mess that is now many parts of inner London imported to Essex.
Even those who voted Remain were well mannered and happy to talk to us. They supported democracy and accepted that we should leave. Such a relief from the screeching and abusive comments we receive in inner London. I wasn’t called a racist or a nazi all day! It was rather nice but I tried not to get used to it…
Afterwards we stayed for a few drinks in the local pub. Not only was it unbelievably cheap but the atmosphere was calm, relaxing and very traditional. I looked around and wished I lived there. It reminded me so much of a kinder, calmer, more reasonable time in England – when we were all living a similar way and wanted the same things and wanted the best for our country and our people. We didn’t feel the need to screech abuse at each other every time we had a different opinion.
It’s sad that in the South East only Essex seems to still be actually ‘English’ in every way. Without being gentrified it is still just a typical English suburb or village. Nothing pretentious – just nice people going about the same life they have lived for generations…
The seat was won decisively on Thursday by ‘Linda’, the Residents’ Association candidate, but UKIP certainly had a much better reception and easier time of it than the team in Lewisham.
ut looking around and being reminded of how we used to be, I can only ask the question my mother asked many years ago: ‘Why on earth are we giving it all away?’
First past the post is universally accepted, simple to understand and use. No argument.and its answers undeniable.
.The entire system which is perfect in itself if used correctly, has been corrupted by small adjustments.
1 The first and most obvious problem is your representative ( Call it delegate if you wish . there is no difference . You have to do as you are told ). He has to come from his constituency and answer to them, He has to live there., and take instructions from his neighbours.
Note :::Strict observance of this by UKIP Would send an immediate and welcome signal to voters. As should the same being done for NEC.. For multiple reasons.
2. The manifesto. and the political party ….. I agree with Nigel. etc etc..
This deserves proper consideration because it has the power to change the power distribution. So clever and responsible people must be included to discuss this please….. Thing is , This would be noticed immediately and could have an immediate affect.
Besides it is the right thing to do…. Let us stop this unthought out policy about this now before more damage is done.
IMHO
I know what you mean by wishing that we were back in the days of English exclusiveness, but the world has spun a few times since then, and England IS INDEED DIFFERENT !
UK/GB has a fine history of accepting immigrants, but in manageable quantities. Today ‘Manageable’ has disappeared due to the stupid dictates of the EU, which shows their assumed power over us, and the acquiescence of Westminster !
This Nation never rushes into anything, and an easy correction is therefore not available. Instead we always seem to do things at the last moment, and have a much harder job of correction !
I fear that our Party squabbling of the Leave EU fraternity, will be the opportunity that is missed. If only an ‘Alliance’ could be made for all these Parties, the voters would see that we were deadly serious and of itself attract more support. Government would be in reach, even upon the discredited FPTP vote system. Being united for just one Government term could bring in a PR system, and then if it were desired, such an alliance could end in favour of separate Parties again !
Coalition between Parties that have very small differences, indeed utterly outweighed by our agreements, would be so possible. It would need vision from the several memberships, and Statesmanship from the Leaders.- Maybe there’s the problem !
We’re not really a banana republic more like another German Democratic Republic – there’s that word again ‘Democratic’ used, but in this context meaning the opposite. Typically EU usage.
View this interview with the solicitor Robin Tilbrook , who launched a legal challenge a few weeks ago to the “rushed” extension of Brexit day , which should have and in his view actually did take place on March 29th, legally.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTZ6sWkij-I&feature=youtu.be
If this case eventually fails Britain’s fate is either May’s fake Brexit or no Brexit at all and we will be in the EU forever, given the current Europhile composition of our entire governance in the UK. The greatest likelihood of it failing is if the Legal Establishment refuse to give it a hearing, although Tilbrook says that is unlikely, given e.g. that it is supported by the formal Opinion of a former Court of Appeal judge. Tilbrook says if it comes to Court , the argument is extremely strong.
By contrast, Gina Miller’s case to try to block Brexit in late 2016 got wall-to-wall coverage in the overwhelmingly Remainer Media, and it finally succeeded in the Supreme Court, forcing the Government to spend time on a Parliamentary Act to get Article 50 off the ground.
The case is being kept out of the Media in order to try to starve it of the publicity and therefore the funding it needs . My own view is that such a crucial issue will inevitably get the funding it needs. Given the amount of coverage Farage is getting in the Media, he must know that if he got behind this case, the money would come flooding in, but he is only interested in his own and Brexit Party bums on seats in Brussels.
Interestingly Gina Miller is now being given significant coverage on LBC, Farage’s media platform, to oppose Brexit and also to oppose Tilbrook’s legal arguments, even though the precedent set by her case in 2016 is central to his case!
Peter
Interesting. One would have though Farage would have been all over this. Perhaps he thinks the case has no merit. Or, perhaps he thinks it has, in which case …
Michael – this is an interesting point. Nigel Farage is a great orator, he appears very tough, presenting well constructed arguments but they always fall short of the whole truth. In other words and I’ve long noticed this: Nigel Farage is pulling his punches and it begs the question why?
Nigel says that he’ll no longer play nice and he does seem to have raised his game but I suspect that he’s really just a part of the pantomime. Still, if we have to vote for the Brexit party to destroy the conservatives and get Brexit moving in the right direction, then so be it, it’ll be particularly gratifying to see the chaos caused in the European parliament if he and his party do well. We must be careful though.
We should be prepared to ditch Nigel and The Brexit Party as soon as they cease to take us where we want to go.
I dislike being so critical of Nigel Farage because without him we’d never have had a referendum but my country is my first concern and everything else is secondary. When the time comes we should take no prisoners, this is not a game that we can afford to loose and we must be ruthless.
I agree flyer. I am UKIP and will stay UKIP . I don’t like the fall out between Gerard and Nigel. And also t feel that Nigel’s new party will not offer anything real after the eu elections whereas UKIP has a full manifesto and activists who campaign on many issues. There is a lot of work to do to save our country and tories who support the Brexit party do not represent me
“Still, if we have to vote for the Brexit party to destroy the Conservatives and get Brexit moving in the right direction” : Ah but what if TBP is a creation of the Tory party to defuse protest and continue the status quo? By contrast, joining and strengthening the “populist” grouping in EU parliament (which I understand Farage won’t do) would cause more havoc for the EU than – well, entertaining speeches that achieve… what precisely?
I can’t see that the Brexit Party is a construct of the Conservatives, Mary. The Tories are bleeding support for TBP.
Michael,
A few weeks back, a caller asked Nigel on his LBC show, about the Robin Tilbrook case,
as I remember, Nigel’s reply was no, “no it won’ happen, it hasn’t a chance”.
Says it all. Even if our corrupt judiciary won this case , unjustly, it would be good for this to be spotlighted so that voters wake up to how corrupt our system is through and through, including the judiciary.