Was the shocking strap line on the bottom of the screen around One O’clock on Friday ‘morning’ 2nd of May as I watched the results on BBC – this eventually leveled out at 11% for BNP and 8% for Greens by Two O’clock, where it stayed [you can find this bit on the BBC news page if you scroll down to over halfway for ‘0335’]. These percentages are for where the two parties fielded candidates
Forget Boris and Ken – the BNP got more votes where they stood than the Greens! I’m personally not that worried about Boris – he’ll have advisers and watchers and despite his manner I think he’s got a good brain under that mop of hair…
What I find shocking is that we’ve moved to a point where folk are so self-centred that they are more willing to vote for the fascists than those who’d try to save our environment – where we ALL live.
It is a ‘relief’ to note that in the London race BNP only manged to get 5.3% rather than any more within that metropolis for what would it have said if they could have managed their 11% average in such a diverse community? Although if they had managed less I would be even happier, the best result being 0%.
It is with hope that I hear that that BNP man/thing/add insult here to your own persuasion… is going to be shunned by the rest of the London Council – I hope they stick to it and that Boris trounces them as he passionately defended the diversity of London on the campaign trial.
I know, it was a disappointing, disappointing result. But hardly unexpected, really. Which is probably more disappointing.
I hope you’re right about Boris.
They will be shunning the 130.000 people who voted for Richard Barnbrook,this is a bad idea. A very bad idea. Shunning people doesn’t make them go away or change their mind,it makes them angry and stronger. They are already angry and too take their voice away will be counter-productive.
130,000 folk in a city of 26 million – although I’m not sure where the ‘boundaries’ are – I’m going to go off and find out.
I think one seat out of twenty-five isn’t much but they’ll use it to justify themselves. Proper policies which represent everybody will make everybody feel more comfortable with each other – not driving out those who do the jobs that locals no longer wish or are just plain unwilling to do is going to help.
Like nurses, doctors and those who are good enough to wait on our tables and serve us drinks…
Whilst I may sound off-handed with the ‘shunning’ remark I refer to my last line – if Boris does indeed represent those of all communities – immigrants and less recently arrived (in the end we’re all immigrants here) then I hope that the ‘need’ some people see for the BNP will fade.
I agree with flipside, ignoring the wishes of those people, whether you (or the others that were elected) agree with them or not, that is after all how democracy works. Marginalising those people because they didn’t vote for someone that you approve of is heading into dangerous territory. I presume that most of them were white, working class and as such they are the largest minority in Britain and by ignoring the wishes of these few you are justifying the existence of the BNP to the rest.
Besides, by my maths the BNP voters represent 2% of the population of London. Assuming that they don’t deserve to have their views represented because they aren’t bright enough is undemocratic.
Not to mention the fuel this would give the BNP, after all 2% of the UK population is black and 2% Muslim…..
You need 5%of the vote to get a seat on the London Assembly [or whatever it calls itself] and so by your logic of only representing 2%… It is not because I think in any way the voters are stupid – it’s about saying what I think about the BNP
I think that the major cause is that these folk are not being represented by the other parties and some of their concerns are genuine but just remember Palestine voted for Hamas because they wanted to clear out the endemic corruption from the Palestinian Authority – not because they wanted another war…
My whole thrust is to marginalize the politician by hoping that other parties will address these folks concerns – some of which are legitimate.