Frontrunner For Deputy Leadership Calls For Action Against The BNP

Leading anti BNP campaigner and deputy leadership frontrunner, Jon Cruddas MP, is to meeting with trade unions from tomorrow in a call to arms against the BNP.

In the week following news that the BNP is to field almost 900 candidates in the May elections, Jon Cruddas, MP for Dagenham, says we have to convert people's feelings of fear and revulsion into immediate and on the ground action.

Jon, together with the anti-fascist organisation, Searchlight, wants to mobilise the trade union movement, including their officers, activists and millions of members against the BNP.

Jon Cruddas, frontrunner for deputy leadership of the Labour Party and MP for Dagenham, said:

"We need the entire labour movement to understand the threat that the BNP represents in the upcoming elections and the need to mobilise it against it.

"We have just over two weeks to convince people that the BNP is dangerous and offers no solutions. We need to implement a strategic, local and very visible campaign to combat the BNP's arguments on the ground and to tell people that they shouldn't be persuaded to vote for them, even to register a protest."

Jon Cruddas has travelled the country over the last two weeks with Searchlight's 'Hope Not Hate' tour which has taken in all of the UK's major cities and many of the towns and communities where the BNP is active. Celebrities such as Billy Bragg, the Sugarbabes, Amir Khan, Coronation Street, Hollyoaks and Emmerdale cast members and Manchester City footballers greeted the 'Hope Not Hate' bus.

The BNP have almost trebled their number of candidates in the upcoming Welsh, Scottish and local elections. They are fielding 876 candidates UK wide this time, over 500 more than the number it stood in last year's local elections.

Jon Cruddas is MP for Dagenham. In his constituency there is one BNP councillor, in neighbouring Barking 11 BNP councillors were elected last year, polling 39% of the vote. Jon is standing as a candidate for deputy leader of the Labour Party. For more information on Jon Cruddas' deputy leadership campaign visit www.joncruddas.org.uk

Jon Cruddas' Deputy Leadership bid has received the support of 100 Labour grassroots activists from every area of the country. They include councillors, local party secretaries and trade union officials. He was overwhelmingly endorsed by 53% of Compass members in March. He has also received the support of Amicus General Secretary Derek Simpson and T&G leader Tony Woodley.

CCNMatthews Press