Liberty GB
Liberty Great Britain | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Chairman | Paul Weston |
| Founded | March 2013 |
| Headquarters |
207 Regent Street, London (mailing address only) |
| Ideology |
Euroscepticism Culturism Right-wing populism Anti-Islamism[1] |
| Political position | Far-right[2] |
| Website | |
| Liberty GB | |
Liberty Great Britain or Liberty GB is a political party formed in the United Kingdom in 2013. It was registered with the Electoral Commission on 5 March 2013 by Paul Weston and George Whale.[3] Its three candidates in the 2014 European Parliament election in the South East England constituency received 2,414 votes (0.11%).[4]
Weston is a former UK Independence Party (UKIP) member and was one of the party's candidates in Cities of London and Westminster at the 2010 general election.[5] He left UKIP over what he described as its failure to address issues related to Islam in Britain and founded the British Freedom Party (BFP). That party formed an alliance with the far-right English Defence League. Weston left the BFP in 2013. He has predicted that within 20 years there will be a war in Britain between the white working class and immigrants. He is married to a Romanian migrant and claims to have been a deep sea diver, a pilot in Africa and a property developer in the Czech Republic.[6]
Liberty GB is anti-immigration, anti-fundamentalist Islam and traditionalist.[1] The group's Facebook page describes it as "patriotic counter-jihad party for Christian civilisation, Western rights and freedoms, British culture, animal welfare and capitalism".
2014 European election
Liberty GB stood three candidates in the 2014 European Parliament election in the South East England constituency, Weston, Enza Ferreri (Liberty GB's media officer) and Jack Buckby (Liberty GB's outreach officer).[7] Buckby founded the "National Culturists" while at university in Liverpool in 2012.[8] They received 2,414 votes (0.11%) placing it 14th of the 15 parties contesting the election.[4]
Paul Weston arrest
On 26 April 2014, Weston was arrested while addressing passers-by outside Winchester Guildhall. A member of the public complained to police and he was detained after failing to move on under a dispersal order. He was further arrested on suspicion of religious or racial harassment.[6][9] Weston's speech quoted from Winston Churchill's 1899 book The River War about Churchill's experiences as a British army officer in Sudan; the passage quoted was critical of Islam. Weston is a former UKIP candidate who parted with it over what he described as its failure to address issues related to Islam in Britain and then joined the British Freedom Party.[10]
Liberty GB radio host trial
Tim Burton, a radio presenter who is a member of Liberty GB, was acquitted of charges of racially aggravated harassment on 4 May 2014 at Birmingham magistrates' court. He had tweeted comments about Fiyaz Mughal OBE, a Muslim campaigner of Tell MAMA UK.[11]
Leaders
| Year | Name | Period | Time in office | Deputy leader/s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Paul Weston | 5 March 2013 – present | incumbent | |
Electoral performance
General election, 7 May 2015
The party contested three constituencies, obtaining a total of 418 votes.
| Constituency | Candidate | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham, Ladywood | Timothy Burton | 216 | 0.6 |
| Lewisham, W & Penge | George Whale | 44 | 0.1 |
| Luton, S | Paul Weston | 158 | 0.4 |
References
- 1 2 Sonia Gable, "Liberty it isn’t", Searchlight, 12 March 2013
- ↑ "Liberty GB – An Insight into the ‘Group’", TellMAMA, 14 January 2014
- Jamie Micklethwaite, "Sydenham and Forest Hill hustings cancelled after candidates allegedly refuse to appear at event with Liberty GB member George Whale", News Shopper, 27 April 2015
- Lizzie Dearden, "Former Ukip candidate and Pegida UK leader says 'Muslims should not hold political power' and claims Syrian refugees do not exist", The Independent, 5 February 2016
- Jess Commons, "Why You Need To Watch The Documentary Exploring If Britain Actually Is Racist", The Debrief 5 October 2015
- Mike Lockley, "Radio host cleared over 'scumbag' tweet jibe to Musilm campaigner ", Birmingham Mail, 4 May 2014 - ↑ Electoral Commission searchable registration database
- 1 2 "Vote 1024 - South East", BBC News, 26 May 2014
- ↑ Kevin Rawlinson (25 November 2011). "English Defence League prepares to storm local elections". The Independent. Retrieved 13 December 2011.
- 1 2 Martin Evans, "Election candidate arrested over Churchill speech", The Telegraph, 28 April 2014
- ↑ South East Euro Candidates 2014, UK Polling Report
- ↑ Matthew Francey, Jack Buckby is proud to be Britain's next Nick Griffin", Vice, 20 February 2013
- ↑ "Euro candidate Paul Weston arrested over Islam remarks", BBC News, 28 April 2014
- ↑ Evan, Martin (28 April 2014). "Election candidate arrested over Churchill speech".
- ↑ Mike Lockley, "Radio host cleared over 'scumbag' tweet jibe to Muslim campaigner", Birmingham Mail, 4 May 2014
External links
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