November 15, 2009

BNP uses public money to fund party officers

The British National Party is using money it receives from Europe to support its two MEPs to bankroll the leadership of its organisation

Of the 14 people employed by the two MEPs only five actually live in the two regions they represent and most fulfil national posts for the party.

In the latest abuse of the parliamentary expenses system, the British and European people are funding the BNP. As MEPs, Nick Griffin and Andrew Brons, are entitled to claim a combined £382,000 a year to pay for their colleagues’ salaries. The two share five members of staff, who all happen to be national party officers and only one lives in either the North West or Yorkshire.

They are Simon Darby, the party’s deputy leader, Eddy Butler, the national organiser, Emma Colgate, the national administration officer, John Walker, the deputy press officer, and Martin Wingfield, who lives in the North West and until recently was the editor of the party newspaper, Voice of Freedom.

Each MEP also has some staff of his own. One of Nick Griffin’s is Martin Reynolds, a bodybuilder from Leeds who acts as his personal minder. When asked about what “specifically” he does for his EU salary, Reynolds said: “I honestly don’t know”.

Andrew Brons employs three people. One happens to be the new BNP Yorkshire organiser while the other two, Adam and Mark Walker, both live in County Durham, which is in a different region.

Searchlight has long argued that if elected the BNP would use public money to fund the party rather than helping the people they are supposed to represent. This is proving to be the case.

Who’s on the gravy train...

Shared staff

Eddy Butler Butler is the BNP national organiser, national elections officer and, until recently, eastern regional organiser. Butler joined the National Front shortly after the 1979 general election and subsequently the BNP. He was the BNP Tower Hamlets organiser and the architect of the BNP’s “Rights for Whites” campaign, which began in 1990 and culminated in the first ever BNP council election victory in Tower Hamlets in 1993. Butler headed the BNP’s European election candidates’ list in the East of England. He lives in Loughton, where his partner Sue Clapp is a district councillor.

Emma Colgate Colgate is the BNP’s national administration officer. Her appointment was announced at the BNP’s European election victory rally in Blackpool. She is also a BNP councillor in Thurrock, where she holds the balance of power and has kept the Conservatives in power. She was second on the BNP European election candidates’ list in the East of England. Before her appointment as national admin officer, she worked as Richard Barnbrook’s researcher at the Greater London Authority.

Simon Darby Darby is the BNP’s deputy leader and press spokesperson. He recently stood down as honorary treasurer. He was previously the West Midlands regional organiser and has worked full-time for the BNP for some time. He headed the West Midlands European election candidates’ list. He lives in Wales near Welshpool.

John Walker Walker has held a succession of jobs in the BNP. He was once party treasurer and then worked in logistics and dispatch roles when the BNP had its Excalibur warehouse in Deeside last year. Since the beginning of the year he has been the BNP’s deputy press officer. When Walker took over as treasurer in 2004, he and David Hannam, another BNP officer, went to the home of the former party treasurer John Brayshaw and had various BNP financial documents shredded.

Martin Wingfield Wingfield was the editor of the BNP’s monthly newspaper The Voice of Freedom until just after the European election, when he went off to work for Griffin and Brons. He was second on the European election candidates’ list for the North West (after Griffin). Wingfield received a 90-day sentence in November 1985 for failing to pay a fine imposed earlier that year for two offences under the race relations laws. He was convicted for inciting racial hatred in election literature distributed by the National Front in 1983.

Nick Griffin’s staff

Alistair Barbour Barbour is the organiser of the BNP’s Carlisle branch and has stood in local elections in the area.

Clive Jefferson Jefferson is the BNP’s North West regional organiser and a key figure in the BNP’s security team. Speaking to a local newspaper in May 2007 about Griffin’s conviction for incitement of racial hatred over a magazine that denied the Holocaust, Jefferson dismissed it saying: “He’s been convicted of having a different view of history”.

Martin Reynolds Reynolds is the head of BNP security. From Leeds, Reynolds is a bodybuilder who was caught by undercover BBC journalists selling knock-off Stone Island and other fake designer clothes.

Tina Wingfield The wife of Martin Wingfield, Tina was the BNP’s membership secretary until her appointment to Griffin’s constituency team.

Andrew Brons’s staff

Chris Beverley Beverley is a BNP councillor in Leeds and was third on the European election candidates’ list in Yorkshire and the Humber. A fluent German speaker, he liaises with the German nazi NPD on behalf of the BNP. For a period last year he managed the campaign by Colin Auty to gather enough signatures to challenge Griffin for the party leadership.

Adam Walker Adam Walker was a teacher who was suspended for accessing religiously intolerant material on the internet. He is taking his appeal to the General Teaching Council. He headed the BNP European candidates’ list for the North East. He is president of the BNP’s tame trade union, Solidarity. Although Solidarity professes independence, all its officers are from the BNP or Third Way, a party run by some of Griffin’s mates from his National Front days, and the very few cases it has ever taken up involve BNP members.

Mark Walker Mark Walker is secretary of Durham BNP and was also sacked as a teacher for allegedly downloading pornography on a school’s computer. There were also questions over a relationship with a 17-year-old former pupil.

Searchlight

18 comments:

poostix said...

The Gri££o and cronies get rich at everybody's expense, and still the stupid rank and file members are too inductrinated to see the wood from the trees!

Anonymous said...

Cyclops is the fat cat who drinks all the cream.

Anonymous said...

Is this actually breaking any laws or regulations?

Anonymous said...

Jobs for the boys, huh.

Dave said...

"Is this actually breaking any laws or regulations?"

That's irrelevant. The BNP (in the form of Griffin and Barnes) went on and on about the MP's expenses scandal and about how immoral they were for e.g. employing wives as secretaries, and here they are handing out jobs to their pals in the party.

I notice Lee Barnes hasn't got one though. I wonder why?

Anonymous said...

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article6720688.ece.


oops!

Antifascist said...

'oops!'

And?

Anonymous said...

"I notice Lee Barnes hasn't got one though."

Or Paedo Boy Collett. Though he probably doesn't care as the party pays him fifty grand a year for his crappy leaflets.

Anonymous said...

"Is this actually breaking any laws or regulations?"

It is only an issue if they don't do any work. All the parties do exactly the same thing i.e. employ members of their own party.

I believe the MEPs expense claims however are far higher than MPs were and it is suggested worse in many respects i.e. claiming for a travel allowance despite it not taking place. The EU seem reluctant to act since it would be seen to put the whole institution into disrepute. Gri££in hasn't been there long enough to claim anything so we will have to see....

Anonymous said...

"pigs with their noses in the trough "

lol

Anonymous said...

your behind the times,alistair barbour aint even in party

Anonymous said...

"alistair barbour aint even in party"

He's stood for the BNP in local elections often enough, the latest being in this year's county council elections.

Anonymous said...

The Walkers, Jefferson, Barbour, Colgate - how long have they been in the party? Big rewards for ass lickers who havent served a proper apprenticeship.

Anonymous said...

check nick griffins mep blog-barbour is not on it. my sources tell me he resigned and walked away-from staf job and indeed party.

Anonymous said...

check wingfields blog , laugh a minute , he thinks him n griffen are gonna rule the world !

Greeny said...

The Walkers, Jefferson, Barbour, Colgate - how long have they been in the party? Big rewards for ass lickers who havent served a proper apprenticeship.

Mmm this sounds more like a disgruntled party member to me rather than one of ourselves .
Maybe this is the start of members realising its never going to work

Anonymous said...

Didn't know you needed an apprenticeship for licking somebody's arse

Keith Ellis said...

As a friend of Mr.Barbour I have to alert people to his disturbed frame of mind. In recent conversations Mr.Barbour has made it plain that he intends to walk into the local bobby’s and ask for Mr.Edward Heath to be arrested as a Traitor. I feel that the pressure of being an Organiser and activist have pushed Mr.Barbour to the point of Mental Breakdown. He has been suffering from depression for some time and has recently been quoting Mr.David Ickes conspiracy theories for all manner of topics. It seems that his Epiphany and the increasingly bizarre statements were just too much for the Party. It was considered too much for him to continue to represent a serious legitimate party and the likelihood for ridicule would have seriously comprimised both Mr.Barbour and the Party as a whole. Mr.Barbour was a stalwart for the Party but they are not Doctors and could not continue to support Mr.Barbours conspiratorial ideas bordering on total fantasy. I am assuming that only he knows why he has chosen to stand as an Independent and as he quite rightly points out “we can have our own thoughts” but lets have those thoughts reflecting the real world eh? I would say watch this space with interest and bewilderment as the conspiracy theories fly!
I just hope that the ridicule he receives does not tip him over the edge of sanity.

Keith