Former mayor slams BNP

A former Lord Mayor of Manchester has branded the BNP as the 'grandchildren of Hitler'.

Coun Afzal Khan says the British National Party share the same ideas as the Nazi Party, who persecuted Jews and many others before and during the Second World War. He was speaking at a meeting on 'community cohesion' at Manchester Jewish Museum on Cheetham Hill Road. The museum is near to where recent anti-terror raids resulted in 12 Pakistani nationals being arrested. They were later released without charge, but are facing deportation.

Coun Khan said: "The rise of the BNP to a level we have not seen for 30 years can strengthen the relationship between the Muslim and Jewish communities. All good, decent people are concerned about this, it is something we share. This is what the BNP are - the grandchildren of Hitler, they share the same ideas, forgetting all humans are the same.

"We all ultimately come from Africa and if you want to be blind to that, it is your problem. Both Jewish and Muslim communities have been victims of extremist elements. There may be political differences over Palestine and Israel, but there are hundreds of years of a strong relationship between the Muslim and Jewish communities. The issue of the BNP affects them both."

The meeting discussed improving relationships in Cheetham Hill, which is home to 23 separate racial groups - and 46 different dialects are spoken. Racist graffiti has recently been daubed on one of the pews at the museum, which is working at promoting tolerance. The meeting was attended by the MP for Blackley, Graham Stringer, as well as museum trustees and directors and curator Alex Grimes.

Director Stuart Hilton said: "Jewish people and the Irish have been in Manchester from the 1750s, so does it make those families not British? I was talking to someone in the Muslim community the other day whose family has lived here three generations. Does that not make them British? Our relations with our Muslim neighbours here are excellent and we believe we can work together to promote understanding of each other. There is a great deal of interaction, but I think the challenge for the future is moving from a state where we are in existence amicably next to each other, to where we cross over the boundary."

Asian News

MP attack's BNP's 'racist' agenda

The British National Party is attempting to drum up support in north Manchester and has launched a scathing attack on the Labour party.

The controversial party has slammed Labour for being in ‘free fall’ and claims the UKs current leading party is betraying working class communities. And the BNP says north Manchester is no longer a ‘no-go’ area for nationalist politics which is reflected through the party winning between 25-30 per cent of the vote in Blackley and Charlestown wards over the past two years.

Both Blackley and Charlestown are said to be long established white British and Irish communities and are areas the BNP feels are under severe pressure from the alleged immigration invasion under Labour.

A statement on the BNP official website said: "Political support for the Labour party is in free fall, as ordinary people at last recognise the extent of Labour's betrayal of white working class communities. There is a now a tangible sense of despair among Manchester’s local Labour ‘mafia’. In a last desperate attempt to stave off rising support for the BNP, the Labour Party has enlisted the support of their political fellow-travellers in the ruling politburo of Greater Manchester Police.

"Following the humiliating departure of Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair, Greater Manchester Police, under Chief Constable Peter Fahy, have now taken on the mantle of Britain’s most blatantly political police force."

Blackley Labour MP Graham Stringer has hit back at the BNP’s criticisms and branded their comments 'racist' and instead stresses the desire his party has to support the Blackley community during the current financial crisis, which is also an attempt to rubbish the BNP’s remarks.

Graham Stringer, said: "North Manchester does not need the BNP causing racist trouble from outside to help destroy our community as they have done in other areas in the past. Especially during these difficult and uncertain times of the credit crunch, Labour councillor are not complacent and do not take people's support for granted. We are willing to work harder to try to ensure that there is as much time to involve ourselves in the community as possible."

Middleton Guardian

BNP spreading myths to sow division — Graham Stringer MP

Stories that asylum-seekers are being given money to buy cars are all part of a BNP bid to create division, an MP is claiming.

Graham Stringer, who represents Blackley, said it was time to dispel some of the myths that have been spread by the party and other far-right bodies. He told fellow members that race relations had improved but on occasions, when there had been waves of immigrants, the nasty bottom-feeding racists had exploited the situation to spread myths.

Mr Stringer said: “One is that Oldham Council provides asylum-seekers with cheques for second-hand cars. If I have heard that once, I have heard it 10 times. It is unusual and ridiculous, but it creates resentment if people are gullible enough to believe it.”

Oldham Council said there was absolutely no truth in the myth.

Mr Stringer said people also believed that asylum seekers were being given free bus travel across Greater Manchester. He said the matter was constantly brought up at meetings he attended, adding: “A number of councillors in the area have heard the same myths and, with me, have investigated the cause of the misconception.”

The Labour MP said he had spoken to the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive which had assured him that no such scheme operated although it was aware of the stories that were circulating.

It is believed some of the myths started after people saw an asylum-seeker with special bus tickets which are not available to the public. These were issued for travel on days when the asylum-seekers had to report to one of the government centres. Transport Minister Tom Harris said payment of travel expenses was a fundamental part of the Government’s policy to encourage asylum-seekers to comply with requirements and keep in touch with the immigration and nationality directorate. It is part of national policy that people living three miles away from a centre are given help.

Mr Harris said: “Asylum-seekers are not being provided with bus passes as some people are claiming. However, it is sadly typical of the extremists of the British National Party to try to exploit the fears of ordinary people and to whip up resentment and hatred against a vulnerable group of people purely for political gain. Frankly, that is a disgraceful attitude. Given the record of the British National Party on fact and truth, I am not optimistic that the myths will stop being circulated.”

Oldham Evening Chronicle

Labour hold off BNP (Charlestown)

Labour has fought off a challenge by the British National Party - despite their vigorous campaign to win a council by-election. But the BNP did finish second in Charlestown, which was left vacant by the death of councillor Eric Hobin, with more than twice the votes of the Liberal Democrats.

Labour's Veronica Kirkpatrick took the seat with a majority of 745 and said she was 'always confident' the BNP would fail to win what would have been their first seat on Manchester council. She pledged to continue the work of Mr Hobin and 'make Charlestown a safer and better place'.

The result, declared early today, saw Coun Kirkpatrick poll 1,373 votes, with the BNP's Joe Finnon on 628 and the Lib Dems' Carol Connell with 239. Kim Glasspole, of the Conservatives, was fourth on 188 and the Greens' Jackie Smith fifth with 81. The turnout was just over 26 per cent.

Politicians of all mainstream parties had been put on alert after Mr Finnon finished second in the neighbouring Higher Blackley ward last month, with more than 700 votes.

Sir Richard Leese, Labour leader of the council, said: "We have maintained our share of the vote and have got more than twice the vote of the BNP. They got significantly less than one month ago and once again the electorate has shown that it doesn't want fascists in Manchester."

Lib Dem leader Simon Ashley blamed his party's third place on what he called an 'unhelpful intervention' by local Labour MP Graham Stringer earlier this week. Mr Stringer had used a debate in the House of Commons to slam a government immigration policy adopted briefly in 2000, which saw large numbers of asylum seekers settled in north Manchester. Mr Stringer said the fact it had been done without more care had given rise to 'damaging myths' which had been exploited by the BNP - despite being completely untrue.

Coun Ashley said: "This was a considerable win for Labour, as you would expect so soon after the local elections. We think Graham Stringer's intervention was unhelpful. The BNP have registered a protest vote but it will not stick."

However, Mr Finnon said the other parties had taken the ward `for granted' and added: "To get one quarter of the vote is a very big breakthrough."

Manchester Evening News