I’ve been ploughing through a book about UKIP and its history: Revolt on the Right: Explaining Support for the Radical Right in Britain, by R. Ford and M. Goodwin (published by Routledge 2014). Ford and Goodwin are university politics lecturers who have written an academic book that seeks to explain the rise of UKIP, drawing on a wealth of new data. Their position on the party is neutral, exploring its strengths and weaknesses impartially.
It’s not an easy read, but as a UKIP member of three years’ standing I have found it worth the effort. My first reaction was admiration for the way that UKIP has survived many setbacks since it was founded in 1993. This survival is due to the belief and determination of various leaders over the years, the best and most successful of whom to date is Nigel Farage. We would not now be looking forward to having our say on EU membership if it were not for the sheer persistence of UKIP in applying pressure for a Referendum.
Then I came to a chapter titled “The Social Roots of the Revolt” and grew rather indignant at what I perceived as the rather snobby generalisations the authors were making about UKIP’s “average voter”. What it boils down to is this: the vast majority of UKIP’s supporters and voters are working- class, “poorly educated” (few or no exam qualifications), aged 35 – 55 plus, and white. Well, I fit into some of those categories and others I don’t, so I was sceptical at first.
But one set of surveys followed another, from a variety of sources, all backing up this social profile of voters who feel ignored by the mainstream parties. The white working-class are the “left-behind” voters, deserted by Labour, Tory and Liberal politicians in their single-minded pursuit of targeted segments of the electorate: the young, university-educated, professional middle classes; and ethnic minorities.
The mainstream parties set out to appeal to those who favour socially liberal policies, which include boosting the number of women and ethnic minorities MPs, and tackling climate change. These voters are more likely to be pro-EU because they have never experienced Britain as a self-governing nation. Their sense of British identity and history is much weaker than that of previous generations. For them, patriotism is an outdated concept.
It didn’t matter which LibLabCon party won an election: anyone who wanted to get out of the EU, was alarmed by uncontrolled mass immigration, and felt concern about the social cohesion of our nation was ignored by the established political class in Westminster. They were left unrepresented, without a voice in mainstream politics. So they turned to UKIP, a rebel party. Yes, it was making sense now – and then the irony of this state of affairs struck me.
If we accept Ford and Goodwin’s arguments based on extensive data gathered over twenty years up to 2013, the amazing irony of the situation emerges. Who has always been, and still is, RIGHT about the bossy, undemocratic EU? And RIGHT about harmful levels of immigration? And RIGHT about the incompetence of the public school and university-educated Westminster elite?
Why, the poor, “uneducated” working-class, that’s who. The people who started work at 16 or younger, worked hard and paid their taxes but often found themselves redundant in economic downturns, saw a trickle of immigrants grow to an uncontrollable flood, had to compete for jobs, housing, benefits, hospital and school places with newcomers who had never paid into the system, watched the EU making the laws instead of their elected representatives, wanted desperately to keep the British pound while highly educated fools insisted we should join the euro ….
I could go on, but anyone who watches or reads the news knows about the migration crisis and knows that Germany rules the EU. Frau Merkel has already told Cameron that the free movement of people across our borders is “non-negotiable”. He has no meaningful reforms to offer, yet continues his “renegotiations” charade.
As the Referendum approaches, remember the wisdom of the “uneducated” who know better than to trust our country to the pro-EU politicians who have betrayed it for 40 years. Be wise for yourself, for your children, grandchildren and all future generations of British people. Turn out to vote, and vote LEAVE. You will not only be voting for freedom and democracy, but also reminding those in government that real power belongs to working-class people with the wisdom to see through the lies and self-interest of political careerists.
I can’t believe I actually got through reading this ‘article’.
Well, there’s a few minutes of my life that I’ll never get back.
If the ‘author’ thinks that the publication is an easy read, then may I suggest that the author decides to set a goal of reading a little more.
I agree with the Carl poster. It is a very easy read.
Maybe you and Carl can get together to form the cosy Colin & Carl Club in which you boast to each other about your reading skills. Then you can write your own analysis of the easy book with some original conclusions.
At least 10 paras, please, not a measly 10 words.
Get cracking!
It is an easy read.
Hence, you are wrong.
Well, I must be wrong, because you say so, Carl. How dull your discussions with people of differing views must be. Perhaps you can improve them by learning the difference between fact and opinion, then attempting to justify your opinion with clear persuasive arguments instead of bald, unconvincing statements.
Just one correction…
Nikki Sinclaire fell out with Farage, left UKIP, and founded the WDARN Party. Sinclaire then set up the e-petition demanding a referendum.
The petition attracted 120,000 signatories, which triggered the debate in the Commons, which led to the commitment to a referendum.
We have Sinclaire to thank for the referendum, not Farage. Credit where it is due.
You do like your quibbles, don’t you? Well, if this is what Nikki Sinclaire achieved, good for her. But I don’t think she would have had 120,000 signatories without the unremitting efforts of UKIP in EU and other elections over many years, would she? UKIP was driving the political agenda in a significant way prior to Cameron seeing the writing on the wall and announcing he’d changed his mind about a referendum.
As for the WDARN party (catchy name) – is it still going?
Not a quibble, Pam – just keen to stick to the facts and give credit where it is due.
I agree WDARN is not the best name (!) but Sinclaire only set it up to force the referendum agenda, which it did successfully.
If you notice I have read through all the comments plus the excellent article and given it all a tick.
Unfortunately I cannot afford to claim to be uneducated, went to Grammar School and was only interested in Sport “ran” away to sea and it was only when my wife to be got hold of me and in effect said learn a trade that I set to with night school and left the uneducated with an ONC and HNC in Building to add to my School certs of Maths, English and History..
But in those days there were jobs for all even if it was factory hands and even the there was opportunity for even the thickest to advance generally from piecework.
Now all those jobs have gone to computers or Robots and the low paid jobs go to immigrants (mostly) anyway.
(anybody pointed out why there are more people in work than ever – you`ve got to park 600k immigrants somewhere?,)
Bravo Pam, only thing you didn`t mention particularly was the pernicious effect of PPE UNI students who become great politicians and the never do a real job (or maybe I missed something)
“…never do a real job..”
Therein lies the root of the problem.
The PPE grads are probably the worst of all, but I didn’t want to get into the minutiae of particular qualifications.
Although I passed the 11+ in 1959 and went to a grammar school, I was a typical ‘working-class underachiever’ and left at 16 with only one ‘O’ level. After having three children I wanted a better future for them and at 28 returned to full-time education, gaining several ‘O’ and ‘A’ level good grades. I was accepted on a 3-year degree course as a mature student and gave birth to another child during reading week in the first year. Having been awarded a 2:1 BA (Hons) in Humanities, I studied for a PGCE qualification at Durham University and embarked on a 25-year teaching career in further education.
So I am not a ‘typical’ UKIP member either, in the sense of having few or no qualifications. However, my experience in the education system convinced me that it was, and still is, worryingly biased to the left from the top down. The Ray Honeyford case and the multicultural mania of the 80s/90s was influential in shaping my politics. Eventually, I found the party that seeks to counter these anti-British cultural ‘norms’ and to regain our freedom as a self-governing nation. I think UKIP will replace Labour as the party of the working-class.
Pam, I wasn`t born with the actual silver spoon, but my father was a school teacher teaching maths at a secondary modern school and eventually became a housemaster at one of the first comprehensive schools.
Obviously he was qualified before the war. He was Headmaster material, but was never promoted – reason I always understood – too big a political mouth – he was a conservative.-local authority labour!
Education has always been an infected political play thing.
Perhaps the only chance is if all the failed political parties disappear like Pam forecasts for the Labour party.,
But I`m afraid it`ll be like they say about the poor “they`ll always be with us”
so will interference in education, by all pseudo idealistic parties.
I wonder if everyone really wanted to know your life story?
A good cure for insomnia I guess.
No one forced you or anyone else to read it. I certainly think it’s more interesting than your petty little post, Peter.
When you vote ‘out’ you will not be alone. Most of the country will be with you. I for one! (together with my un-educated BA / Bsc Degree…not bad for a war baby from a ‘poor’ background)
See you there!
Yes, know the feeling.
With my B.A and B.Sc. (Hons) degree, mainly in Technology and a smattering of Maths, from the Open University, earning a living and bringing up a family, my contempt for those who potray UKIP as uneducated, knows no bounds.
And who really knows the value of a PPE, when they can be led by the nose, force fed propaganda and believe it!!
Excellent article!
It’s about time that the self-appointed “elite” got out of the way of the rest of us and let us get on with building and protecting our democracy.
UKIP voters are uneducated? Quite possibly.When I was at school we didn’t have the opportunity to go to university to gain a useless ‘oligy we went to work to earn money so we could live. My qualifications earned while at work is a mere ONC in electrical engineering but I do have a degree from the university of life
The university of life is impartial in the lessons it teaches, whereas the left wing bias in educational institutions is often breathtakingly blatant.
Very well put. Of all things that are wrong in this country, our educational system is probably the thing that most needs reform.
It does indeed but has taken hold like a creeping cancer; in my years being educated I do not recall that being the case, but certainly so in my occasional dealings with them during my kids’ education.
It will take a great effort to correct it; how are we going to remove those responsible except through their ultimate retirement? Maybe home schooling is the only present option.
Education,or what we call education, mostly does more harm than good. Children grow up with an instinctive eagerness to learn. Schools need to channel that eagerness to learn in the right directions; otherwise children’s whole mental energy will be devoted to learning skills that will be of limited usefulness in adult life, such as football or computer games.
Unless they become a really successful footballer on £100,000 a week/month, and intend to use the money for better purposes.
And computer games can be a lucrative background earnings, for serious computer nerds. It’s whether they can and do, use the knowledge for more serious intentions such as Robotics or AI.
Splendid article!
Thank you. I wrote this as a letter to our local monthly newspaper in the Redcar area where the steelworks recently closed.