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The British National Party (BNP) is a s in Local Government In England , but is not represented in the Parliament Of The United Kingdom . In the 2005 UK General Election , the BNP received 0.7% of the popular vote, finishing eighth overall and in the Welsh Assembly Election 2007 they came 5th overall. According to its Constitution , the BNP is "committed to stemming and reversing the tide of non- White Immigration and to restoring, by legal changes, negotiation and consent the overwhelmingly white makeup of the British population that existed in Britain prior to 1948."1 The BNP proposes "firm but voluntary incentives for immigrants and their descendants to return home."2 It advocates the repeal of all anti-discrimination legislation, and restricts party membership to "indigenous British Ethnic Groups deriving from the class of ‘Indigenous Caucasian ’". The party accepts white people with non-British ancestry if they are assimilated into one of the British ethnicities. The BNP believes that there are significant Biological Racial differences that determine the behaviour and character of individuals. The party asserts that preference for one's own ethnicity is a part of human nature.3 Historically, under John Tyndall 's leadership, the BNP had strong Anti-Semitic tendencies, but in recent times, the BNP has tended to focus on Muslim s as its main adversary. The party has publicly said that they do not consider Hindu s and Sikh s to be any threat, although the BNP doesn't accept practicing Sikhs and Hindus as culturally or ethnically British.http://www.bnp.org.uk/news_detail.php?newsId=390 The BNP has even worked with anti-Muslim Sikh groups.http://www.guardian.co.uk/racism/Story/0,,624352,00.html Mainstream political parties in the UK marginalise the BNP, and the party has been strongly criticised by Conservative Party leader David Cameron , Liberal Democrats leader Sir Menzies Campbell , and former Labour Party Prime Minister Tony Blair .456 HISTORY Founding of the modern BNP The current BNP has its roots in the New National Front, founded in 1980 by John Tyndall , a former chairman of the National Front (NF). In 1982, the New National Front and a faction of the then-disintegrating British Movement led by Ray Hill merged to form the new British National Party. Tyndall was elected leader and Hill became his deputy, with much of the early funding provided by Tyndall's father-in-law, Charles Parker .N. Copsey, ''Contemporary British Fascism: The British National Party and the Quest for Legitimacy'', Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2004, p. 22 In 1983, in its first General Election , the party sponsored 53 candidates; three more than was required to obtain a Party Election Broadcast on television. The broadcast was transmitted on 31 May and consisted of Tyndall, flanked by two Union Flag s, speaking to a camera. Images of the Brixton Riot were shown as Tyndall's speech attempted to encourage nationalism over racism. One observer noted that the "emphasis was less heavily anti-black... than the National Front 's".Martin Harrison in ''The British General Election of 1983'', Macmillan 1983, p. 155 The giving of television time to the BNP was controversial, and was debated on '' Right To Reply '' on Channel 4 . During the campaign, Tyndall stated that the only significant differences between the BNP and the National Front lay in the fact that his party would bar homosexuals from high office, and he said that he was hopeful that the two parties could reunite."Tyndall's race policy", ''The Times'', 4 June 1983 , p. 5 The party's candidates won 14,621 votes in that election. The BNP's average vote was less than the National Front, and in the two constituencies where both parties stood candidates, the NF was clearly more popular. David Butler and Dennis Kavanagh , ''The British General Election of 1983'', Macmillan 1983, p. 354 However, unbeknownst to the BNP, Ray Hill was actually working for the group ''Searchlight'', and observers have suggested that the party's relatively low profile in its early years may have been related to his sabotage.Barberis, McHugh and Tyldesley, ''op cit'', p. 594Richard Thurlow, "Fascism in Britain", I.B. Tauris, 1998, p. 258 The increase in the deposit required of parliamentary candidates hindered the party during the 1987 General Elections , when it put up just two candidates. 1990s After some financial troubles, the party's national headquarters were established at ). At two local council by-elections in 1990, the party came in third, and on October 1 , 1992 the party won 20% of the vote in the Millwall ward. A second by-election in Millwall in September 1993 saw a renewed BNP campaign to take the seat. The party obtained its first councillor, Derek Beackon , by a majority of seven votes.London Research Centre, "By-election results to the London Borough Councils 1990-94", p. 68-69 Although Beackon was able to achieve little on the council before the full council elections (in which he lost his seat, after a successful anti-fascist campaign), the by-election win led to a great increase in publicity for the party. The party headquarters site increasingly became a venue for anti-fascist protesters who linked its presence to racial crimes in the surrounding area.See, e.g., letter to ''The Guardian'' 15 September 1992 from Richard Adams, John Austin , Diane Abbott and Len Duvall A near-riot ensued on 16 October , 1993 when the police forced a 15,000 anti-BNP protest march to change its route away from outside the party building (31 people were arrested and nineteen police officers injured).Rajeev Syal and Tim Rayment, "Rioters clash with police over neo-Nazi bookshop", ''Sunday Times'', October 17 1993 The BNP under Nick Griffin Nick Griffin joined the BNP in 1995. In 1999 he knocked out Tyndall as BNP leader after a contested leadership election. Once comfortably in position Griffin began a programme of modernising the BNP's image, rephrasing the policy of the compulsory repatriation of non-whites and rewording it as a "firm encouragement" for voluntary repatriation.7 In the 2002 local elections, the BNP won 3 seats in Burnley and averaged 20% of the votes where it positioned councillors. The party was accused, however, of exploiting the high tensions in areas that had recently undergone racially-motivated riots.8 Increasing electoral success led to increased scrutiny from the press. In ''The Secret Agent'', a BBC documentary broadcast on July 15 , 2004 , filmmaker Jason Gwynne went undercover and joined the BNP for six months. His secret filming recorded party leader Nick Griffin calling Islam a "wicked, vicious faith". In his speech, Griffin also stated that "For saying that, I tell you, I will get seven years if I said that outside", referring to the maximum sentence for the criminal offence of Incitement To Racial Hatred . The day after the documentary was broadcast, Barclays Bank froze, then suspended, the BNP's bank accounts.9 The BNP's response to the programme was that it had featured "the loudest and most hot-headed BNP activists {Link without Title} were deliberately plied with drink and subject to suggestive provocation". Griffin did not apologise for his own comments, stating that "it's still not illegal to criticise Islam". He and BNP member Mark Collett were subsequently prosecuted for incitement to racial hatred, but were found not guilty. (see below). 2000s The party has increasingly positioned itself against Islam , which Griffin has repeatedly called "wicked and vicious".10 In the wake of the 7 July 2005 London Bombings , the BNP released leaflets11 featuring images of the bombed Route 30 bus and the slogan "Maybe now it's time to start listening to the BNP." This move was criticised by the Daily Mail as playing on people's high emotions and grief following a horrendous attack.12 2006 after being found not guilty of charges of incitement to racial hatred at their retrial.]] |
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