Fallout from the Nick Griffin interview

by John Street
Tuesday, March 30th, 2010

Denis MacShane is furious that Iain Dale reckons the BNP can be compared  to the Conservative Party. In an interview with BNP leader “Nasty” Nick Griffin in Total Politics, the right-wing blogger says the BNP is “a national political party with elected representatives in the same way that the Conservative Party is”. Mr Dale is extremely close to the Tories – he’s a former chief of staff to former Shadow Home Secretary David Davis and stood as a Conservative candidate in 2005 – and is widely regarded as one of the most effective Tory propagandists in the blogosphere.

“Mr Dale has gone a step too far in casually elevating the BNP to the same status as the Conservative Party – thus fulfilling a key ambition of Nick Griffin to  be taken seriously as a national mainstream leader of an accepted political party”, said Mr MacShane. “In the European Parliament there are reports of Conservative MEPs voting the same way as the two BNP MEPs and laughing and joking with  them instead of shunning these representatives of anti-Jewish and racist politics in Britain.”

The Rotherham Labour MP resigned from the editorial board of Total Politics, which is funded by Lord Cashcroft, in  protest at the decision to boost Griffin’s national status with a major interview treating him as a party political leader.

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About The Author

John Street is Tribune's diary columnist.
  • http://www.deeplyflawedbuttrying.wordpress.com Lisa Ansell

    I have to respectfully disagree.
    The BNP are not a political party in that they do not have a political manifesto, they have one of race-but they are a recognised political party, and I have friends who have found themselves represented in the European Parliament.
    I am no fan of Iain Dale- but I read that interview- it didn’t entertain the idea that the BNP platform could be debated- but it did not attempt to give the BNP the same legitimacy the Conservative party has. What Iain Dale said was merely a statement of fact- the BNP ARE a political party- you can mark a cross on a ballot, and find yourself represented by them. The validity is where the problem lies, and no news organisation can ignore the presence of a valid political party- it feeds the myth that BNP are persecuted.

    The BNP should not be a political party- but that interview did not give them that legitimacy- in fact I think the interview showed roundly how far they are from being a political party.

  • http://www.deeplyflawedbuttrying.wordpress.com Lisa Ansell

    I have to respectfully disagree.
    The BNP are not a political party in that they do not have a political manifesto, they have one of race-but they are a recognised political party, and I have friends who have found themselves represented in the European Parliament.
    I am no fan of Iain Dale- but I read that interview- it didn’t entertain the idea that the BNP platform could be debated- but it did not attempt to give the BNP the same legitimacy the Conservative party has. What Iain Dale said was merely a statement of fact- the BNP ARE a political party- you can mark a cross on a ballot, and find yourself represented by them. The validity is where the problem lies, and no news organisation can ignore the presence of a valid political party- it feeds the myth that BNP are persecuted.

    The BNP should not be a political party- but that interview did not give them that legitimacy- in fact I think the interview showed roundly how far they are from being a political party.

  • Tailgunner

    Lisa: “The BNP ARE a political party”
    Lisa: “The BNP should not be a political party”
    Lisa, who gave you power over such decisions?
    P.S. They do have a manifesto, check out their website

  • Tailgunner

    Lisa: “The BNP ARE a political party”
    Lisa: “The BNP should not be a political party”
    Lisa, who gave you power over such decisions?
    P.S. They do have a manifesto, check out their website

  • Robert

    They are a political party which has MEP’s, and may well get one or two MP’s. We do have problems with immigration mainly self inflicted because of labours inability to build enough dam social housing, we now have pockets and areas of Asians living in small enclaves, these enclaves have now Muslim courts, in some places they even have rules of law.

    And sadly they have not been assimilated into British culture, and have become outcast with the UK.

    I can see the BNP growing bigger and if they are destroyed another one will grow up in it’s place.

    We need to bring in more social housing Asians coming here must be made part of the UK culture, otherwise we will have two different cultures here.

  • Robert

    They are a political party which has MEP’s, and may well get one or two MP’s. We do have problems with immigration mainly self inflicted because of labours inability to build enough dam social housing, we now have pockets and areas of Asians living in small enclaves, these enclaves have now Muslim courts, in some places they even have rules of law.

    And sadly they have not been assimilated into British culture, and have become outcast with the UK.

    I can see the BNP growing bigger and if they are destroyed another one will grow up in it’s place.

    We need to bring in more social housing Asians coming here must be made part of the UK culture, otherwise we will have two different cultures here.

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