Solidarity disaster goes critical as criminal investigation is threatened

Several correspondents have written to bring us up to date with the current bizarre situation regarding the BNP's fake union Solidarity. Rather than simply report an update though, we felt it would be useful to go through the timeline and the relevant sections of the available documents which are essential in understanding precisely what's happened and who has played what role in creating the chaotic situation that currently exists, which seems to have led to two separate Solidarity unions running independently of each other, both disputing its right to exist over the other. Once we've dealt with that, we'll report on the position as it stands now.

The three principal characters involved in this fiasco are Pat Harrington (General Secretary), Clive Potter (President) and Tim Hawke (vice-President) with Billy McLinden (current Acting General Secretary) playing the Harrington understudy and Nick Griffin (BNP leader) very clearly playing the villain of the piece.

As is made clear by the minutes of the meetings, which are available on the Solidarity web site this whole sorry saga began at the meeting of the Solidarity Executive Committee (consisting of the three principal characters named above) on May 20th. The meeting was quorate (which simply means that votes that were made at that meeting are binding when passed by a simple majority - a small but important point) and the accounts were duly submitted by Harrington, who was apparently acting as treasurer. Rather than interpret the minutes, we reproduce the relevant portions below exactly as they appear.

'1. Accounts Review

Proceedings were opened with the President insisting on a review of the long-requested accounts from the General Secretary / Treasurer.

General Secretary / Treasurer provides a piece of paper with his basic financial notes written on them. However, no receipts were provided or printouts of Account Balance made. President expressed his deep concerns regarding this and requests full accounts to be sent to him after meeting. Discussion takes place where we agree to search among our membership list towards finding a suitable candidate with book-keeping experience to become the Treasurer but that perhaps the President should take over this role once the accounts are in proper order. President is reluctant and states that this issue of a new treasurer must be delayed until the accounts are in order.

5. Discussion of Upcoming events

General Secretary discussed the plans he has made to promote the union at an open parade event called July 12th. Concerns were made by Vice-President that we mustn’t become partisan with regards to the Northern Ireland situation with Vice-President highlighting the RMT Bob Crow example. However, General Secretary who has considerable understanding in this region ensured that this wouldn’t place us on one particular side of the political divide that effects that area.

General Secretary discussed how he had been in discussions with the Chairmen of the BNP (currently the Unions main supporter) and that with the upcoming August BNP RWB family festival he had agreed (without EC consent) to holding a stall / two workshops and personally making a speech on the main podium. Vice-President was extremely concerned due to other upcoming events, such as the union Coffee Campaign, which would not give us time to feature and prepare for workshops, General Secretary expressed how this wouldn’t be a problem and would leave the workshops in the hands of the Vice-President.

Vice-President requested clarification on the term workshop, but none was given. President agreed with the RWB event having a Union stall but also expressed considerably confusion regarding what the workshops involved as well as the speech material that the General Secretary would use, particularly in regards to his terminology with previous adverts and articles that he had published without EC consent. The stall concept was approved but the speech and two workshops were not.

8. Investigation Declared

President returns to the area of the Accounts, accusing the General Secretary / Treasurer of not being transparent with regards to Union finances. Vice-President agrees with this and states his surprise at the lack of account information provided and its format.

General Secretary / Treasurer stated that this is his duty and trust must be shown. Vice-President criticises the General Secretary / Treasurer’s hiring of accountants stating that no 3 quotes for accountant were provided and that EC concerns were ignored. Also that the company did not provide a clear fee. General Secretary / Treasurer stated that time was against him due to restraints, when President expressed that the accounts could have been produced many months ago as requested, General Secretary / Treasurer stated that such comments were not helpful.

President expressed concerns over a meeting requested by the Union’s main sponsor Chairmen Nick Griffin on the 05/04/07 (where the Chairmen informed the President / Vice-President that the General Secretary / Treasurer needed a computer and small union salary from the union funds. This was opposed by the President and Vice-President due to financial situation of the union). General Secretary / Treasurer stated that his close friendship with Chairmen led him to express his requirements.

President states that this behaviour showed contempt for the EC and so that he would seek an investigation with concerns regarding the General Secretary / Treasurer’s actions. General Secretary / Treasurer stated that this couldn’t happen since the EC would have to make the judgement and if the General Secretary was suspended there would be no Quorum. General Secretary / Treasurer asked for Vice-Presidents input into this disagreement and he stated that if any concerns exist then an investigation should take place to resolve the issue. With the Vice-President’s approval the President confirms that a formal investigation would take place where the General Secretary / Treasurer would then be temporary suspended during the process. General Secretary / Treasurer refuses to accept the legitimacy of this.'

What is immediately obvious is that there has been a prior and continuing problem with the accounts - the phrase 'long-requested' gives that away along with 'President expressed that the accounts could have been produced many months ago as requested', and when the accounts arrive, there are no receipts and the accounts appear to be simply rough notes.

It's also pretty obvious that Harrington has not been keeping his colleagues au fait with what else he's been up to. In section 5, Harrington states that he has agreed (with Griffin) to hold workshops, run a stall and make a speech at the BNP's annual beer-fest, the Red White and Blue festival (RWB). In fact he doesn't appear to have kept his Executive Committe colleagues up to speed on much at all, as witnessed by the bitchy 'previous adverts and articles that he had published without EC consent' remark.

Quite rightly in our opinion, the EC expresses its concerns at the state of the accounts and then goes on to criticise Harrington, who seems to have regarded Solidarity as his own little toy, for taking on an accountant without bothering to get the required three quotes for their services. This sense of ownership by Harrington is shown up dramatically when it's reported that his old friend Nick Griffin had butted in by demanding a computer and a wage for him - rejected by the two more sensible members of the EC on the grounds that the union couldn't afford it.

At this point I would have kicked Harrington out of the meeting with a thick ear but Hawke and Potter, being far more patient, followed the proper procedure and decided to suspend him pending an investigation into both his behaviour and the state of the accounts. Though Harrington disputes the validity of the suspension, it's clear from the minutes that it was properly conducted.

The timeline gets a bit hazy for the next few weeks but Solidarity tidies things up with a fairly startling News Bulletin that outlines the events as they arrive in quick succession.

'On the 3rd June 2007 a Special Executive Meeting was held where the General Secretary was suspended pending an investigation. A temporary Acting General Secretary [Billy McLinden] was nominated and approved. This individual was chosen to head this investigation due to his experience in fighting corruption in the past. On the 3rd June 2007 the suspended General Secretary was informed of his status and asked to cooperate with the investigation.

An alarming amount of evidence has been obtained regarding Mr Harrington’s conduct. He has refused to relinquish any details with regards to the finances and so was redrawn from the Solidarity main account. He also set-up a Paypal online account, whose access codes he has consistently refused to provide. On the 20th June 2007, just over a week before the expected completion of the investigation, Mr Harrington hijacked the Solidarity website by contacting the sites host (a friend of his) and displayed his own altered version.'

This is extraordinary behaviour for a man who purports to be the General Secretary of a union - even one supported by the BNP. Anyone with any sense would have resigned, issued a statement defending himself to anyone who listened and walked away from the whole mess with as much dignity as possible held in reserve. Instead of that, Harrington goes off the deep end, hijacks the account and the website, and announces that he is Solidarity.

Is this the action of a rational man or a mini-dictator, we ask? Ah, well it depends why he did it the way he did, and the entrance of the BNP at this point tends to assume a little devious planning going on in the background.

It seems a little too much of a coincidence that Harrington took over the Solidarity website (run by Nick Griffin's chum Calvary Church School bomber Lambertus Neiuwhof) on exactly the same day that the BNP posted a notice on its website stating that Solidarity had been the 'subject of a far-left sabotage bid' and that these lefties were planning to replacing Harrington with someone [McLinden] who 'could well be a Marxist agent provocateur'. We reported on this statement here and we're not repeating it all here except to remind readers that it was in this statement that the BNP called for an Extraordinary General Meeting. As Harrington and now the BNP have the membership list, the accounts and the website, it seems they'll have their way. But not without a fight.

The Solidarity News Bulletin continues;

'Since then he has undemocratically declared himself the General Secretary of Solidarity with the understanding that he, and he alone, leads the union. Be assured that the Certification Office is now investigating this with deep concern.

Concerns have been expressed that Vice-President Tim Hawke has as yet refused to sign off the accounts of the union, which needs to be handed into the Certification Office shortly. His response to this is...

“I have strong reasons to believe that the AR21 form (accounts document) is highly inaccurate but have been unable to verify this due to the suspended General Secretary / Treasurer’s refusal to provide me the union receipts and balance print offs. This document is the Official Annual Returns form as presented to the CO, and if I signed off this deeply dubious version of our financial report I could very well be complicit in Union Corruption”

The President’s response to this is...

“Mr Harrington has placed the Vice-President in an unfortunate position. However, the Vice-President is an individual of high integrity and should Mr Harrington provide the details that he claimed to have presented to the mystery accountants and the auditors, then I know that the Vice-President would sign off the accounts. The current standing EC is deeply and generally opposed to union corruption, and we will stand up against any such poisonous actions since we are custodians of the Union members money and we won’t abuse this.”

With the exception of the Paypal account, your finances are safe. However, if you pay via Paypal we would strongly recommend that you cancel your subscription.

Once the investigation is complete, we shall ensure that all our members receive details of any evidence discovered and what actions we shall take if questionable activities have taken place.

Due to the unprecedented actions of the suspended General Secretary / Treasurer, the standing EC have been forced to plan an Extraordinary Executive Meeting into this individual’s actions with concerns towards necessary disciplinary action.

We are aware that Mr Harrington has called for an Emergency General Meeting, and that he states that requests should be sent to his personal home address. For a suspended General Secretary to act in this way, before the results of an investigation into his conduct is even complete, is totally inappropriate. In addition, any declaration stating that he is the union’s leader is highly unconstitutional.

Therefore the Executive Committee does not recognise this EGM. However, if members have any concerns or requests to make to the Executive, then please feel free to write to Solidarity’s Head Office at PO Box 8127, Leicester, LE21 9AN.'

On June 26th, with no website and no access to funds, Tim Hawke emailed us to attempt to put the record straight - certainly as far as the Hawke/Potter side of the argument is concerned - but it had already become clear that the BNP was deliberately manipulating things to re-establish what it sees as its union. In fact, since that date there has been no attempt, as far as we know, to suggest arbitration or even a simple meeting between the two sides to discuss the problems.

Clearly the divide is too great. On the one hand there is a pair of people who are apparently anxious to get a union that will support their own peculiar viewpoint up and running and on the other is Nick Griffin and the BNP, who want the union for some other reason. It can't be the same reason or the BNP would leave it in the hands of Hawke, Potter and now McLinden. Our guess would be the potential it has to be an earner for Griffin/the BNP. If the union miraculously managed to take off and, for example, the entire membership of the BNP joined, the potential skim (political fund) for the BNP would be enormous.

The BNP Dirty Tricks Dept is working overtime. On July 5th, an article appeared on the BNP website stating;

'It has emerged that a significant number of letters to the old Leicester PO Box were not getting answered. We do not know if this was an internal failure, or if left-wing postmen were interfering with deliveries there. Either way it is essential to stop using that address, particularly for sending money. Any letters or emails advertising or purporting to come from Leicester should be ignored, and any literature advertising that address must be destroyed'

We are assured that all of this is entirely untrue, that letters are being answered and that there is no internal failure with responding to mail. To interfere with the running of any organisation in this way is surely a criminal offence? If not, it damn well should be.

'New members are also entitled and encouraged to add their voices to this call.'

Pending any Extraordinary General Meeting there should be no new members. Membership should be suspended, particularly in a case such as this, to avoid one side packing the membership temporarily simply to achieve its aim, which is precisely what the BNP is doing.

'Please note that Solidarity’s Paypal system is working properly and is in safe hands.'

Indeed? Whose are those? Nick Griffins? Pat Harringtons? We know all about Griffin and his apparently insatiable lust for money but what about Harrington? Well, we've already seen what a dodgy character he is - prepared to lie and connive his way back to the top of the union (along with his computer and wage packet, no doubt) and content to see those who question his financial integrity or indeed capability thrown out unceremoniously. In fact, he's remarkably like Griffin in that respect.

But the chickens might well be coming home to roost. Several of our correspondents have consistently mentioned the disappearance of £400 from the Solidarity account that, according to the union's bank statements, appears to been transferred by Harrington after his suspension by Potter and Hawke. We have no way of knowing if this is true but if it is, that is arguably a criminal act. We understand that this is how it's seen by the genuine Solidarity leadership and that the police have been or are being contacted regarding taking further action.

While they're investigating that, the police might also care to take a look at the legality of what Harrington and Griffin have done to the union, with an especially close look at Griffin and his request via the BNP site that people send membership money to what is now effectively (though not morally) Pat Harrington's private Paypal account and PO Box in Edinburgh.

After this disastrous beginning we would be surprised if the Certification Officer granted any kind of credibility to Solidarity. If it stays in the hands of Hawke, Potter and McLinden it'll be impotent and will no doubt collapse soon through lack of interest and support, though one never knows. If it goes to Harrington and Griffin it will be based in corruption before it ever really started and any meaningful funds will be siphoned off into the BNP's ever-empty piggy bank or on the next stupid idea that Griffin has for making more money from hot air.

Either way, Solidarity is doomed to collapse completely in the fairly near future. Pending the outcome of any criminal investigation (if one actually takes place), Griffin and co will more than likely bulldoze their way through the democratic process and that'll be the end of the union.

One wonders why the BNP wanted a union of its own in the first place - just a few years ago, its manifesto said 'People whose freedoms must be curbed are the pressure groups, the media and trade unions’.

That's presumably unless money can be made out of having one of your own.