October 20, 2009

BNP hit by second leak of 'members database'

The BNP is bracing itself for potentially fresh embarrassment tomorrow when details of the party's UK-wide rank and file membership are expected to be posted on the internet.

The list, which purports to be a snapshot of the party's support in April this year, includes the names, addresses, postcodes and telephone numbers of people who have signed up to the far-right group, including the grade of membership assigned by the party – Standard, Family, Family Plus, Gold, OAP, and Unwaged.

This list was leaked to a website, which insisted today that it was genuine, and that it intended to publish the information tomorrow.

Today the BNP seemed unaware of the potential disclosure and said it appeared to have been timed to undermine the party ahead of its leader Nick Griffin's appearance on Question Time on Thursday. Today the political row about the BBC's decision to invite him on to the programme intensified, with the corporation refusing to bow to pressure from a cabinet minister to cancel Griffin's appearance.

The apparent disclosure of a membership list will add to the controversy surrounding the party. The Guardian has seen the list but could not verify its authenticity. It appears to show that:
  • The BNP had 11,560 members as of April this year, including one peer;
  • The party appears to have benefited from a surge in female recruits – one in eight of the party's members are now women;
  • The highest concentrations of membership lie in Leicestershire, Lancashire, Derbyshire and Lincolnshire.
If the document is authentic, it will be the third time the party's internal membership data has been made public in recent years.

In November 2008, a list of members' names, addresses, contact details and sometimes jobs and hobbies was leaked by disgruntled members, who were said to have become frustrated that the party had become too soft under Griffin. That list was widely circulated on the internet and last month 37-year-old former BNP member Matthew Single, appearing before Nottingham magistrates, admitted leaking the data and was fined £200 for breaching the Data Protection Act.

In December 2006, an undercover investigation by the Guardian revealed that the organisation's members included Simone Clarke, then a ballerina for the English National Ballet.

A spokesman for the website which is proposing to publish the list said today it wanted to reveal the membership data in order to provoke a debate in the UK about why people want to become members of the BNP.

A BNP spokesman said it considered any publication of its internal membership data to be a criminal offence under the Data Protection Act.

"This is an example of the perpetual hatred and vilification we face," said BNP deputy chairman Simon Darby. "The public will look at this and think it is another example of persecution of the BNP and wonder what on earth the establishment is frightened of."

Griffin will become the party's first representative to appear on Question Time on Thursday evening, when he will face fellow panellists including justice secretary Jack Straw. The BBC's invitation to Griffin has caused outrage and today the Welsh secretary, Peter Hain, called on the broadcaster to withdraw the invitation because the BNP is currently "an unlawful body" after the party told a court last week it would have to amend its whites-only membership rules to meet discrimination legislation.

The BNP claimed the publication of the list was timed to sabotage the impact of its Question Time appearance. Darby said BNP officials are currently examining ways to capitalise on the platform.

The last time BNP data was published, it emerged that teachers, policemen and former members of the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats had signed up. Several dozen of them admitted to being members and were named in the press. The latest list suggests that at least 19 of those members have now left the party.

The Guardian

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

Can I say, as a ex-BNPer who joined pre-European Elections, I am loving just sitting back and watching them embarass themselves. If any socialists come to talk to me, I can tell them I'm now a member of the Socialist Workers Party. :)

Using this a potiental new members data ;)

Owen Hargreaves said...

Confirmed as genuine by Martin Wingfield at 23.22

AndyMinion said...

Weird things are happening...

Paul "Green Arrow" Morris scamming £300 from his equally deluded supporters for another "mysterious" bit of fantasy espionage.

The business of the SouthWest Nazzers being Night-Of-The-Long-Knifed.

Much grunting on the Nazzer talkboards about Gri££in's ever-more-blatant begging letter scams.

And now this (if it happens...)

For Gri££in's initial reaction...

http://notnickgriffin.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

I think the BNP themselves leak the lists to give themselves publicity, the last list was proven to have been put on the net by Matt Single deputy head of BNP security, it will be intresting if this list is genuine to cross refrence the names with known EDL members, this may give us more evidence to prove the EDL are a front organisation for the BNP,

Anonymous said...

And these are some letters that the BBC Ceefax posted.
----- Original Message -----
From: sylviemay
To: sylviemay@sky.com
Sent: Tuesday, October 20, 2009 1:42 AM
Subject: Fw:



Just in case you haven't read this. These are letters from BBC Ceefax 19th October.

The government is warning the BBC there could be legal action and wants to abandon Question Time. Could this be because millions only know the tabloid version of the BNP? Thanks to censorship, people have no idea about the courteous chairman members admire. Did they hope to vilify the party as racists but now are too afraid the public will see a calm, honest politician, who if given the chance, will draw the distinction between racism and patriotism, offering the public the fresh hope for the future?

BS, Tyne and Wear



How dare Peter Hain deny to the BNP leader the right of free speech in this

countryMay I remind you that he was a trouble-making ‘student’ when he came to this this country. Nobody denied him the right at that time.
We want to hear what every party has to say.

RN, RN. Teesside

It is far better for the BNP to be listened to in a democracy and to clear the air on various issues, than to crush and stifle debate as Mr Hain wishes.

Or does Mr Hain not believe in the democratic process?

JI, Sussex.

3baskets said...

Does anyone wonder if the BNP are leaking this themselves so they can play the victim card?

Anonymous said...

I wonder who they'll blame this time....

Anonymous said...

“Last time, calls were made to BNP members and supporters from Labour Party-supporting trade union call centres. If this should happen again, these calls should be recorded and handed in as evidence to the police. The police should also be asked to trace the calls....

sayeth nick griffin....

wtf................

SA said...

Looks like some are blaming Jim Dowson already. This from Stormshite

"Could be wrong, but seeing as how people working in the Belfast BNP office (who aren't members or nationalists) have access to the membership list to phone members up and ask to take out VoF subs, upgrade membership to gold etc., this is a probable source of the leak."

Pete Green said...

The list that was released in November 2008 showed 12,801 - this one 11,560. I thought the BNP had ten million members now? And fifty million GOLD members?

Anonymous said...

I've been over to Wikileaks and read my entry on the list. It is definitely not up to date - it has my old address and phone number.

Hope the new tenants don't get the late night calls I had last time it was leaked ... then again, they might call the police about them, which I didn't do. They have children to consider.

According to ex-neighbours of mine, they've already had bricks through the rear windows. Wasn't you lot was it?

Barbara said...

One leak was careless, two leaks is negligence.
BNP members must be complete masochists.

Antifascist said...

'I've been over to Wikileaks and read my entry on the list. It is definitely not up to date - it has my old address and phone number.'

So you didn't notice it was the list that was published last November then? Do try to keep up.

'According to ex-neighbours of mine, they've already had bricks through the rear windows. Wasn't you lot was it?'

No. Oh, and you're a liar.

TN said...

I checked on Wikileaks two minutes ago and the new list isn't there yet.

Dave from Penrith said...

Hmm, I'm starting to wonder if there IS another list or if the BNP has spread this rumour deliberately for the martyr status which they seem to find so valuable.

Anonymous said...

I am Spartacus.

Anonymous said...

just been to clive jeffersons blog , pathetic write up about it , must think he is head goon !!

ExBNP said...

It was all Sadie's fault.
Either that Steve Blake, Kenny Smith ..........oh perhaps not they werent members in April 2009!

My money is on Belfast.

Anonymous said...

The list is up and it's definitely the new list. Just found someone on there who I'm really upset to find is still a member.

Raymond said...

The new list will be released and the Marxist PC establishment on news comments boards and message-boards all over will be blamed despite an ex BNP being convicted for the last one. I can actually see this being done purposely for a publicity stunt.

Anonymous said...

http://wikileaks.org/wiki/British_National_Party_membership_list_and_other_information%2C_15_Apr_2009

Anonymous said...

sadie graham was working in call centre in disguise...

or maybe griffin wants more donations

Ex-BNPer said...

sadie graham was working in call centre in disguise...

Yes I thought so to! Its a publicity stunt. Its what Gri££in is good at, publicity stunts, in fact he is a right walking stunt himself.

Anonymous said...

Damn - Does this mean I have to spend all of the weekend melding the two lists together, then burning them on to discs for distribution ?

Old Sailor