For Britain

The For Britain Movement
Leader Anne Marie Waters
Founder Anne Marie Waters
Founded October 2017
Split from UK Independence Party
Ideology Anti-Islam
Right-wing populism
British nationalism
National conservatism
Euroscepticism
Political position Far-right[1][2]
Local government[3]
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Website
forbritain.uk

For Britain is a minor[4] far-right[1][2][5] political party in the United Kingdom, founded by the anti-Islam activist Anne Marie Waters after she was defeated in the 2017 UKIP leadership election.

History

Waters left UKIP and formed For Britain after she and her supporters were described as "Nazis and racists" by Henry Bolton and UKIP's former leader Nigel Farage. The name is taken from her UKIP leadership campaign slogan, "Anne Marie For Britain". Waters said that the party would "speak to the forgotten people".[2] On 9 March 2018, For Britain registered with the Electoral Commission, a requirement for any political party wishing to put up candidates in elections and to solicit donations for campaigns, as "The For Britain Movement".[6]

The party received the support of Tommy Robinson, former leader of the English Defence League.[1] Its platform includes reducing Muslim immigration to the UK to near zero, and to "bring the entire EU project down".[7] The Times described the party as intending to fill the space left by the demise of the British National Party.[8]

In November 2017, the far-right British nationalist political party Liberty GB merged into For Britain.[9] In April 2018, the singer-songwriter Morrissey declared his support for For Britain.[10]

The party fielded fifteen candidates in the 2018 local elections, with none being elected.[11] The party came last in almost all the seats it contested.[12][13] In June 2018, the party expelled one of its local election candidates after Hope Not Hate linked him to the proscribed neo-Nazi group National Action and the white nationalist group Generation Identity.[14] Some of the party's other candidates had been identified as having shared content from Nazi social media accounts, or to have posted racist, antisemitic and nazi content.[11] Waters contested the Lewisham East by-election, receiving 266 votes (1.2% of the total) and losing her deposit.[15] The party has one councillor, who sits on Stoke-on-Trent City Council. Richard Brougham, who was elected as a UKIP councillor in 2015, had previously been suspended from UKIP and suspended from a group of local independents before being expelled after a caution for assault.[16][17]

Some former British National Party figures who are unable to join UKIP have headed For Britain meetings, included former councillors and expelled former election chief Eddy Butler.[18] The party has been associated with a number of figures from the extreme right, including the Traditional Britain Group and Generation Identity.[19]

Media personality Katie Hopkins and holocaust denier Ingrid Carlqvist are listed as speakers for the party's 2018 conference, as well as American author Robert Spencer, who is banned from entering the UK.[20] Ahead of the conference, Hope Not Hate published results of an internal poll from the party, showing nearly half of For Britain's members supporting a ban on immigration from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Somalia.[20][21]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Humphries, Will (12 October 2017). "Ukip loser Anne Marie Waters will start far-right party". The Times. London. Retrieved 14 October 2017. (subscription required)
  2. 1 2 3 "Former UKIP leadership candidate to launch new far-right party". Politico. 12 October 2017. Retrieved 14 October 2017.
  3. ↑ https://www.hopenothate.org.uk/2018/06/20/britains-councillor-banned-stoke-council-premises/
  4. ↑ Bull, Simon (17 July 2018). "News Shopper cleared by Ipso after For Britain complaint". News Shopper. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
  5. ↑ Rossiter, Keith (10 April 2018). "How the Liberal Democrats are making a comeback in Plymouth".
    - Pidd, Helen (18 May 2018). "Manchester victim's brother voices 'hostile environment' fears". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 May 2018.
  6. ↑ "Registration summary - The For Britain Movement". electoralcommission.org.uk. Electoral Commission. Retrieved 11 March 2018.
  7. ↑ Luke Dolan (12 October 2017). "For Britain: The new political party launched by Ukip 'islamophobe' Anne-Marie Waters". Talk Radio.
  8. ↑ O’Driscoll, Sean (10 October 2017). "Ukip reject Anne Marie Waters founds own far-right party". The Times. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
  9. ↑ "An important announcement from Paul Weston concerning the future of Liberty GB". libertygb.org.uk. Liberty GB. 27 November 2017.
  10. ↑ Telegraph Reporters (17 April 2018). "Morrissey tackles Brexit, Hitler and hard-to-find eggs in bizarre self-published interview". The Telegraph.
  11. 1 2 "Meet the For Britain". hopenothate.org.uk. Hope Not Hate. 26 April 2018.
  12. ↑ Andersson, Jasmine (4 May 2018). "Local elections 2018: The far-right loses out, and which LGBT+ councillors have secured a seat?". Pink News.
  13. ↑ Walker, Peter (4 May 2018). "Ukip general secretary says party is 'like the Black Death". The Guardian.
  14. ↑ "Ex-member of neo-Nazi group was Leeds election candidate, claims anti-racism organization". RT. 7 June 2018.
  15. ↑ "Lewisham East by-election results 2018". Lewisham London Borough Council. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
  16. ↑ "For Britain's only councillor banned from Stoke council premises – HOPE not hate". HOPE not hate. 20 June 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  17. ↑ Corrigan, Phil (8 June 2018). "Should voters have the right to recall councillors?". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  18. ↑ "EXPOSED: Ex-National Action and BNP members active in Anne Marie Waters' For Britain Movement – HOPE not hate". HOPE not hate. 6 June 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  19. ↑ "For Britain: a magnet for racists and nazis – HOPE not hate". HOPE not hate. 19 September 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  20. 1 2 Townsend, Mark (23 September 2018). "Katie Hopkins to speak at far-right rally with Holocaust denier". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  21. ↑ "EXCLUSIVE: For Britain's extreme policy plans leaked – HOPE not hate". HOPE not hate. 21 September 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2018.


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