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.
Paul Jenkins
The BNP is not a normal political party and they should not be treated as such
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).
Showing comments 26 to 50 and replies | View All
Iain Monks (08/06/2009 at 07:17)
Perhaps now with the BNP victories they will finally realise that the electorate does care about imigration and will work towards what the majority of us really want which is a controlled but fair system for entry into this country.
D Vader (08/06/2009 at 07:29)
You cannot tell people how to vote. Well done MEN
Big Hamish McDonald, City Centre (08/06/2009 at 07:31)
Hamish Macbeth, Whitefield (08/06/2009 at 07:31)
And MEN - your "results live" section advertised it starting at 9pm CEST. What is CEST? - do we no longer have British Summer Time or have we been totally incorporated into the EU and now have "Central European Summer Time"?
North Bury, Bury (08/06/2009 at 07:55)
Audenshaw Bob (08/06/2009 at 08:13)
66% of the population entitled to vote did not bother to turn out. Better to berate them for not using their vote and allowing in parties like this. The far right has also gained in France and Germany.
I think part of the problem is that as soon as one mentions the word immigration one is branded a racist. Last year an MP said that it was smabolic that the government didn't know how many illegal immigrants were here and that something had to be don. Simple statement, but he was branded a racist, nazi etc. So nobody can have a sensible debate about immigration without being branded a racist. I am not talking about far right ideas on repatriation, but just controls so we don't have £1m illegals.
As for someones comments about the BNP not letting non-whites join well a makte of mine was a copper (white) and tried to join the Black Police Officers Association but was refused because of his skin colour. Is that not racist?
Mybol Zarichin, Scratchin Tons (08/06/2009 at 08:16)
steve grimsley, Perth (08/06/2009 at 08:18)
You reap what you sow,Britain is becoming a multi cultural powderkeg.Multiculturism is ok if it is not forced upon you.We were never asked if we wanted it.Perhaps we dont.To get into Oz was a nightmare.Paperwork,finances,history all looked into.To get into the UK is like walking through an open door.I am going to miss it but realise that I have to intigrate into my new Country of residence.With that in mind I shall open a tinny of Fosters whilst waiting for my steak to cook on the Barbie.Have yet to come across graffiti,A hoodie,litter,rudeness,Hazel Blears,The Wintertons,Chaytor or a junkie.I know I will one day but this is a pleasant surprise for me.
Enjoy the BNP,enjoy the Riots,thank god you still have City to watch
John- still Sheikhin' all over (08/06/2009 at 08:24)
So I now have the BNP leader representing my views in European parliament.
thank you non voters. the 8% PR system seems to have worked better for the BNP than the LibDems.
the big parties who decided not to take the BNP head on but remain quiet about the issues they raise, so not to offend anyone, now find themselves sharing a room with a white supremist, whose own party constitution bars anyone not having the profile of a true Aryian.
the WASP has stung and now their non-welcome list will get longer.
If I do nothing, i wonder how long before my Irish grandad genes becomes an issue with them.
a mancunian, but not a proper loyal one it seems.
History repeats itself when people forget and do nothing.
mr. cynical, manchester (08/06/2009 at 08:28)
Elliott Pest, Newton, Nr. Hyde. (08/06/2009 at 08:30)
UweRosler28, Manchester (08/06/2009 at 08:34)
This morning I'm proud that my wife's Indian and I might just take up the offer of paying descendents of LEGAL immigrants to leave this country and go and live in their country of origin...
...it would be a better place and a better life than living in this stinking racist rathole of a country...
Gerard Huddlestone (08/06/2009 at 08:34)
The problem with democracy is the notion that any opinion is valid. It is not. Some opinions are so despicable that decent people would blush for shame for expressing them.
Fortunately, the only reason the BNP gained their seats on Thursday was because of the nonsense of proportional representation, and an obscure version of it at that. When the UK finally wakes up and removes itself from political union with the continent, we can ditch this ridiculous system and the BNP will disappear back the obscure fringe where they belong.
And I am not a member of UKIP nor a supporter. I am Labour through and through. I want the UK as member of the EEA. Full stop. Nothing more or less.
mr. cynical, manchester (08/06/2009 at 08:38)
Mr.Cynical,Republic of Gorton.
IS IT REALLY 33 YEARS, TAMESIDE (08/06/2009 at 08:39)
S P In exile, Tameside (08/06/2009 at 08:42)
The cause is there for all to see and the electorate should be onto their MPs telling them that immigration has now gone too far and a reversal should be set in motion. It is no good the mainstream parties calling the BNP racist that is the easiest thing in the world pulling the race card and then do nothing. Immigration should be discussed in an adult and civilized manner without anyone being called a racist.
This is something that affects every walk of life from schools to hospital s and accommodation we have just not got the infrastructure to encourage more immigrants, we are a small island we only have so much space. So before anyone calls the BNP remember if it wasn’t for Lab/Cons/Libs parties we would not have a BNP problem.
Dubai Steve, Dubai (08/06/2009 at 08:43)
Protests in London calling for Terror Attacks....... Arrests made 0
Protests against out troops returning home.........Arrests made 0
Protests and Violance outside Manchester Town Hall......Arrests made 0
MP's commiting FRAUD on a massive scale............Arrests made 0
Yes most of you are right the BNP might not be the best way to go but what other choice do we have?
Both main stream parties have disgraced what was once a great nation. It is now a place with no identity where it is nearly illagle to celebrate our religious holidays for fear of upsetting asylume seekers and immigrants to our country.
Also let me ask this how many of you would have now been facing a jail term if you had commited fraud AGAINST the goverment?
Now the BNP isnt the right choice but they are the only ones with enough guts to stand up in public and tell people what they belive in
Rob Lawrence (08/06/2009 at 08:46)
Yes, the mainstream parties are not exactly lily-white saints, but it is utter stupidity to vote for "a murderer when you find out the one you voted for is a thief" so to speak. If the issue was to curb immigration, the mainstream parties could have tackled that - eventually anyway.
"Indigenous Brits" - what does that mean? I mean how far do you go? The invasion of the Angles and Saxons after the fall of the Roman empire? The Norman invasion of 1066? I think most of us are non-indigenous, just look at the origin of the indigenous British surnames - most of them are of foreign origin! Much easier if they just said "non-white" - and that is just plain ignorant racial discrimination.
Some of these BNP supporters should listen to the "Where is the love?" by the Black Eye Peas - now that makes sense! And where are the Christian values in all this? Love thy neighbour regardless of creed and colour and all that?!
Ah well, at least just one bright point, at least Frazier Campbell will think twice about going to Hull now!
A. Spokesperson (08/06/2009 at 09:00)
I for one, want this counties doors to close, I want people who are here illegally to be sent back to their own country of origin!.. To do this we need to withdraw from the EU State whose laws supersede ours!.. Doing this would result in massive savings in Social Security benefits and Housing benefits, A massive reduction in our Legal service costs!.. An even bigger reduction in the The Health Service black hole.
It would be advantageous for our main parties to address these problems or even accept that they exist!.. But until such time, the BMP will continue to grow bringing with it unrest and greater insecurity for all!
Bejjy ex Salford now Malta, Malta (08/06/2009 at 09:00)
As for Nick Griffen being elected to represent the North West region as an MEP; we, and that includes society, reap what we sow. With the election of Griffen and the BNP member elected in the Yorkshire and Humber region, we are reaping the result of years of disastious immigration policies by both the Labour and Tory parties; lets just hope that this is a wake up call for main-stream politics in the UK.
Nigel Wheeler (08/06/2009 at 09:04)
Black Flag (08/06/2009 at 09:06)
It's typical of the Labour mindset that the first thought is to suggest that the problem is that the system allows people to exert influence roughly in proportion to their vote. If the only thing Leese has to offer is an implication that we should skew the system to get the result he would prefer, he should step aside and let somebody with some ideas take over.
Nick Griffin: "The most demonised and lied about party in British politics has made a massive breakthrough tonight"
The BNP got a single digit percentage of the votes in the North West, finished fifth and got fewer votes than they did in 2004. Not a roaring success in my book.
Norfolk Blue, Thetford (08/06/2009 at 09:10)
Grey Flag, manchester (08/06/2009 at 09:11)
I'm not alone
Laura Norder, Didsbury (08/06/2009 at 09:28)
Do you live in a little blue bubble? Many of the Tories were(at best) equally complicit and 'guilty' in the expenses debacle, so don't try and pin it all on Labour
BNP - brutes in suits.