Browse Sections

Interactive

Popular Sections

Weather

Rain and drizzle

Temp High: 13°C / 56°F

3 day forecast

Personal Finance

Balance Transfer

Card	Typical APR

Barclaycard Platinum	15.9%
NatWest Platinum	16.9%
Royal Bank of Scotland Platinum	16.9%
Virgin Credit Card	16.6%
Egg Card	16.9%

Customers with a 'good' credit profile

Company

Typical APR

Platinum Exclusive	7.8%
Sainsbury's Personal Loan	7.9%
Alliance & Leicester	7.9%

Fees may apply

News

| Submit Comments | Comments (195) | « Previous Story | Next Story »

View gallery (total of 2 images)

You need Flash player 8+ and JavaScript enabled to view this video.

298

250

ZBjss8_HFMk

false

BNP wins north west Euro seat

June 07, 2009

FURIOUS scenes greeted the far-right BNP’s European election victory after a night of drama at Manchester town hall.

Party leader Nick Griffin – who has a conviction for publishing material likely to incite racial hatred – will now represent the north west of England, including Greater Manchester, in Brussels.

Newly-elected Euro-MPs from all the mainstream parties walked off the stage in protest as Griffin began his victory speech.

Sir Robert Atkins, the Conservatives’ top candidate, described the BNP as an ‘aberration’.

Tony Lloyd, MP for Manchester Central, described the result as a 'moment of shame’ for the region.

The BNP won the last of eight seats in the north west by around 5,000 votes, ahead of the Greens.

It came fifth in the north west elections with 132,094 votes meaning the party gained their second seat of the night.

His victory came after the party won its first seat when Andrew Brons received 120,139 votes in the Yorkshire and Humber region.

Earlier hundreds gathered outside the town hall under the Unite Against Racism banner ahead of the candidates arriving for the declaration.

Euro election results night - as it happened

Placard waving campaigners manned the entrance to the Town Hall to greet the MP delegates.

And when the BNP leader arrived in a gold people carrier vehicle they stormed forward preventing him from getting out.

The BNP is not a normal political party and they should not be treated as such
Paul Jenkins

Earlier speakers told crowds to the strains of the Bob Marley hit One Love that a vote for the BNP was a vote for ‘racism and ignorance’.

The BNP wins came as the party appeared to attract significant numbers of disaffected Labour voters.

Health Secretary Andy Burnham, a North West MP, said the result was a “sad moment for British politics”.

He said: “It is deeply uncomfortable to see the BNP polling in the numbers they have.

“Whatever the country’s problems the BNP are never the answer.

“The BNP is the ultimate protest vote, a two fingered vote and largely a comment on Westminster politics.

“I think the BNP have got very clever in hiding their racist beliefs.”

Aberration

Tory MEP Sir Robert Atkins described the BNP as an ‘aberration’.

Speaking after his re-election, Sir Robert said: “We have today an aberration which many right-thinking people in this country and in this region will be appalled by.

“I know that my colleagues in the Labour Party and Liberal Democrats will join with me in regretting what has happened tonight.

“I can promise on behalf of the sensible parties represented tonight that we will fight the battle for regional and British interests.

“I am sad that a triumph has been tarnished by the election of someone who we do not approve of.”

Re-elected Labour MEP Arlene McCarthy added: “I am sad that democracy has thrown up the aberration of the BNP. It is a party of prejudice and intolerance.”

Lib Dem MEP Chris Davies, speaking after his re-election, said: “Ninety-two per cent of the people of the north west have rejected a party which promotes policies of racial hatred.

“It says something about us as individuals. We can try to justify it as a protest vote but I do not think that the BNP hides its racist views and clearly some people sympathise with that.”

Sad

Sir Richard Leese, Labour leader of Manchester City Council said: “It is a very sad day for the north west.

“I think it shows the flaws in a system that allows them to get a seat with such a small share of the vote.

“All of us who care about this country, care about our way of life here, care about democracy, will spend the next five years working to make sure the fascists are not returned.”

But Mr Griffin said he was “absolutely delighted”.

“It will be a huge change in British politics,” he said.

“The most demonised and lied about party in British politics has made a massive breakthrough tonight.

“The public have had their say in a democratic election and we should respect that.”

The European elections use a method of proportional representation used in elections to the European Election is called the d’Hondt system.

The voter votes for a candidate, personally, but the vote is principally counted as a vote for the candidate’s party.

The basic idea is that a party’s total vote total is divided by a certain figure which increases as it wins more seats.

The party with the highest vote gets one seat allotted in the first round. Its vote is then divided by two. The party with the highest vote in the second round then wins a seat and its vote is divided by two.

If a party which has already won a seat wins another round then its percentage vote is divided by the number of seats it has won plus one.

This continues until all the seats are allocated.

The elected MEPs are: Sir Robert Atkins (Con), Arlene McCarthy (Lab), Paul Nuttall (UKIP), Chris Davies (Lib Dem), Saj Karim (Con), Brian Simpson (Lab), Jacqueline Foster (Con), Nick Griffin (BNP).

Euro election results night - as it happened

How you voted

| Submit Comments | Comments (195) | « Previous Story | Next Story »

Most recent user comments 25 of 195

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ... | 8 | Next Page Show 25 | 50 per page

Now that the vile oppotunist Nick Griffin has been elected an MEP, is he prepared to represent Asians and other minority people in the European parliament? Is he prepared to meet these people and discuss thsir problems with them? or is he only representing whites?

Omar Yacub
26/06/2009 at 21:39

Well Rosina - perhaps if you lived in the UK you light understand the concerns expressed by people. I do not but worked in the European Parliament and sadly Mr Jean-Marie Le Pen (French National Front)has created havoc for years - not least by declaring the Holocaust never took place and that whilst the President of the EP was Simone Veil who survived Auschwitz whilst he mother and sister perished there. Yes it's the price we pay for living in a democracy but a very sad day when the likes of Nick Griffin are elected.

Valerie Power
15/06/2009 at 17:20

It's not a surprise the BNP got a seat in this election.Rochdale has the worst mp in it's history he only cares about one section of the community and people are fed up of it,of course it's shameful that this racist party got so much support but people feel scared and are fed up of open door immigration policy.

gary connaughton
10/06/2009 at 08:00

Oh my God, i can't believe the comments from all of you..Why are you so afraid of the BNP? is it that they may take away all your benefits away and send you out to work?....Great news for the BNP and for Rochdale.

rosina, brisbane Queensland, Australia
10/06/2009 at 03:59

democracy fair and square, like it or loath it what the people want they get, right or wrong, basic priciples, if you dont like it go and live somewhere else.

treacletown toryboy, treacletown
10/06/2009 at 02:35

I have to say that "PETER DOFFS" comments sum this up completely !!!! BUT ...... are these so called "demonstrators" not cast from a similar mould as what the BNP are portrayed as being ???????, they are merely the "thugs" of other parties are they not ????? THE BRITISH PUBLIC ONLY HAS ITSELF TO BLAME FOR THE MESS WE SEE OURSELVES IN NOW ...... FOR FAILING TO VOTE WHEN REQUIRED ........ FOR FAILING TO TAKE POLITICIANS OF ALL PARTIES TO TASK OVER THE YEARS ......... FOR FAILING TO TAKE A REAL INTEREST IN POLITICS AS A WHOLE !!!! One thing we can all hope for with the recent furore on the "MP's expenses scandal is that WE DO NOT LET THIS MATTER DROP !!!! LETS USE THIS AS A STEPPING STONE TO ACTUALLY SORT BRITISH POLITICS OUT !!!! AND MAKE IT A MODEL OF HOW SOCIETY DEMANDS A MODERN POLITICAL SYSTEM TO RUN !!!!, WITH OUT CORRUPTION ...... WITH CLARITY AND WITH DIGNITY ........ THEN, MAYBE, JUST MAYBE THIS COUNTRY AND ITS PEOPLES CAN GET BACK ON ITS FEET AND START TO MOVE FORWARD IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION !!!!!! LETS NOT LOSE THIS OPPORTUNITY !!!!!!! ........

Dennis the Menace, Hyde
10/06/2009 at 01:40

its a cry for help from so many that voted for the BNP so take heed people are fed up instead of moaning about them being fairly elected do something about the problems that got them there its common sense

sugar n spice, manchester
10/06/2009 at 01:30

Nice one Nick, shame about the hire-a-crowd egg throwing no-marks on Tuesday!

MarXPacE, Sheriff Street
9/06/2009 at 23:00

TOO DISGUSTED TO SAY ANYTHING AT ALL ON THIS ONE!! TOTALY SHOCKED.

mogangirl,
9/06/2009 at 20:25

It seems obvious to me that the Knuckle draggers found Buh Nuh Puh easier to read than UKIP.

Dismayed
9/06/2009 at 19:37

Dismayed to see BNP in the North West but fear that the behaviour of corrupt "democrats" like Blears Smith Hoon Darling etc created such disgust as to give them an open goal.

Peter doff
9/06/2009 at 18:25

well zarquan i can say that ecause i live in floida and have lived here for 20 years .i grew up in stockport were on regular basis brawls and stabbings broke out .for the average person here crime is very low ,old people can go out without fear and young people respect there elders .most crimes are in area s that you just would not go to ,just as you would not go and hang in mosside or addswood.so leave the americans alone ,in general they are very polite people .also as an english person they would treat you warmly and welcome you to there country .its not like you see on tv as thats make believe .also you should also remember that it was the usa that supplied the uk durng the second world war and then later many hundreds of thousands of them died defending the uk against germany .

smit88888,
9/06/2009 at 17:36

As a native Salfordian I say shame on Mancunians and the North West for voting in a BNP MEP! Are your memories so short that you have forgotten the principles of democracy we fought so hard to win in WWII? I never thought I'd live to see the day.

Valerie Irala, Belgium

Valerie Power
9/06/2009 at 16:51

There are a lot of sanctimonious people commenting on this issue. How many I wonder have been buying up properties tarting them up and letting the out almost exclusively to immigrant and migrant workers, without a thought for, or a concept of community. The BNP were not elected in the leafy suburbs. They were elected and voted for in some of the most socially and economically challenged parts of the north west.

And who is left carrying the can for that? The locals and the immigrants. Not councils and employers, not the decision makers not the buy to let landlords. And certainly not the government. Those of us that do actually live in areas where these new social and economic changes are happening just get on with it regardless of race.

Immigrants have always made their way by being accepted amongst the poor and challenged. It is the semi detatched , curtain twitching, educated middle class that have done this.

Andanotherthing, Mcr
9/06/2009 at 15:48

Hello smit88888, How can you assure me that most of the USA is a lot safer than the UK?

Is it because they are bad shots with their handguns?

English and Irish decent accounts for 19.5 per cent of white population according to CIA World Factbook.

zarquon, bramhall
9/06/2009 at 15:44

I was reading today's MEN and saw that 7 out of 10 Greater Manchester borough's had more votes for the BNP than Green. Up to this point, I was simply angry that people voted the BNP into power, but after reading that, I felt sick and ashamed of my city. For the first time in my life, I was no longer proud to be Mancunian, and for the first time, I am truly glad to be moving away. It's a sad day.

Kal Dodgson, Soon to be ex-Manchester.
9/06/2009 at 15:00

zarquan ,haha now its the americans fault for global warming too.please remember that most american people are english or irish decent and i can assure you that most of the usa is alot safer than the uk .no one should be ashamed for voting bnp except the politicians for allowing people to get so fed up that they will go to the extreme.

smit88888,
9/06/2009 at 11:18

Ashamed to be from the North-West.

The Satisfied Customer,
9/06/2009 at 05:26

Ive counted over 50 reasons given for people voting BNP just in this thread. I think the reason is they have campaigned non stop ,on news forums etc,usually unchallenged for years.Not to mention leafleting,door knocking etc.,waiting for the opportunity to strike and the expences scandal provided that.People are probably more clear what they stand for than any mainstream party.The challenge against them came too late.Ignoring them was never the way.It was just the easiest option.A bit lik going along with expences system,hoping not to be caught.The easy ride for politicians is over.

Angie33 , Manchester
8/06/2009 at 21:33

NW electorate should be ashamed of allowing the BNP a voice in Europe. An absolute disgrace.

nyb, ex manc
8/06/2009 at 19:29

Malc, Oldham

Ask a lot of old soldiers what they think and you will find many saying was it worth it, whats happened to Manchester. They are not refering to the BNP but the problems this council as brought to the streets of Manchester the lack of respect being shown to the elderly. One recently making the following statement "They (the council) should put a sign up on Openshaw Bridge ABANDON HOPE ALL YE WHO ENTER HERE" another saying he doesn't even know the area he was born in and brought up in also making the statement why weren't we asked our opinion on what is happening. Address these problems and people won't vote BNP, do not address them and more and more will. The councillors should hang their heads in shame.

Readresdigest

readersdigest
8/06/2009 at 19:03

Thanks Blears. See what you've done. But you don't care do you.

astepcloser,
8/06/2009 at 18:53

Hello UweRosler28, the argument you put forward about knowing a country well and being better able to voice an opinion is somewhat dangerous.

A polar bear knows the arctic very well but knows nothing about global warming caused by Americans, they just see the ice shrinking.

zarquon, bramhall
8/06/2009 at 17:35

CityCentre, Manchester - must agree with what you said to UweRosler28, Manchester. I’d say he either mustn't be aware of the horrors of the caste system or is happy to endorse this by default if he intends to go & live happily alongside such a regime! The Allseeing Crystalchild

Such a regime? Interesting how people think they know things about a country that they in all probability have never even been to. Just to help you have a more intelligent conversation in the future, you may like to know that the caste system was outlawed in India in 1950.

There may still be a few examples of it being followed in more rural area's but across the larger cities in india, barriers have mostly been broken down.

Remember this is relatively a new country in it's current format, escaping from feudal rule and British colonialism and trying to establish itself as a 21st Century country... it's not perfect but by god, it doesn't have 130,000 white trash that blame their ills and bad fortune on someone other than themselves...