The Surprising Rise of UKIP
Not so long ago it seemed that the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) was no longer an effective force in politics. Disaffected Labour voters – and there are many – have either stopped voting, or have generally turned to the Conservative Party, even though its leader, the eco-friendly David Cameron, does not command great enthusiasm.
A decade of political correctness, uncontrolled immigration, rising crime, a serious downturn in the economy, and the recent “expenses” scandal, in which almost countless MPs have been discovered creaming off of the tax payer, has apparently pushed people over the edge. And, not surprisingly. Justice minister Shahid Malik had claimed 66,000 pounds for his London home, while paying rent to a constituency landlord – and has resigned after an inquiring was launched into this behavior. Poor Labour MP Elliot Morley had forgotten that he had paid of his mortgage, and claimed 16,000 pounds improperly. The list goes on.
However, it is UKIP – not the Conservative Party – that is now benefiting from voter disenfranchisement. And an unexpected boost for the party came from former Conservative Party chairman Lord Tebbit recently, when he publicly urged Tories to withhold their votes – and with this generally being interpreted as a nod for voters to cast them instead for UKIP.
Just over a week ago a YouGov poll for the Sunday Times suggested that while Labour and Conservative had lost support, the biggest gain of all th eother parties was for UKIP – with a rise of 7% in recent months (This would give UKIP four seats). Similarly, the Sunnewspaper revealed that a YouGov poll saw UKIP with a rise in support of about 8% for UKIP. Both this and a ComRes poll on EU voting intention puts the party at 15 percent. According to ComRes:
In Westminster polls both the main parties seem to have suffered, this means that the Conservative lead has been broadly unchanged, but Labour have been pushed to unprecedented lows and are close to falling to third place.Overall ComRes predicts that the results of the election will look something like this: Conservatives 28%, Labour 23%, Liberal Democrats 14%, and UKIP 15%. However, it also says that:For the European election […] there seems to have been a huge shift in support towards UKIP […]
It’s quite likely that UKIP will gain even more support than they already have, since news coverage of them increasing in the polls and them being people’s vehicle of choice for a protest against expenses may encourage more people to support them.
The results of a BPIX poll carried out for The Daily Mail, and published in the last few days,suggests a similar rise in support for UKIP, and a fall in support for the main three, putting the former neck and neck with the governing Labour Party.
UKIP has run an effective campaign, with a convincing election broadcast [video]. But, for those who don’t know, its campaign policies include withdrawal from the EU, and the establishment of “[…] a genuine free trade agreement similar to those enjoyed by other non-EU nations such as Switzerland, Norway and Mexico.” Protection of British jobs. And an end to uncontrolled immigration.
UKIP leader Nigel Farage has suggested that his party will come third in the upcoming EU elections, and that Labour will come fourth.
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