Activists are hold a rally at next month's Conservative party conference in Birmingham at which criticism of Coalition policies will be aired. A British division, launched last year by The Freedom Association, has held events including a "Boston tea party" in Boston, Lincs. It has joined forces with the Taxpayers' Alliance pressure group, which is being advised by Freedom Works, a large Washington-based political group that backs Tea Party candidates. The organisers, who have already attracted thousands of disgruntled British conservatives, are being advised by the US low-tax, libertarian activists. The groups have been emboldened by Christine O'Donnell's victory in the Delaware Republican Senate primary on Tuesday, over Mike Castle, a Congressman and former Delaware governor. She is the latest candidate supported by the tea party – a loose coalition of anti-government conservatives – to oust an opponent backed by the party establishment. Sarah Palin, the former vice-Presidential candidate, is the group's figurehead and was the main speaker at a protest against Barack Obama's policies last month in Washington DC attended by more than half a million people. Raheem Kassam, one of the British tea party organisers, also held talks with US activists at the huge CPAC conference earlier this year. "We want to counter what we believe is a Left-wing bias in our culture," Mr Kassam said. Simon Richards, director of The Freedom Association, said he was also being assisted by leading activists from Australia and Italy. "Lots of people feel left out by politics at the moment," Mr Richards said. "It's not just taxes – they feel overwhelmed by the sheer scale of government." Mr Richards said he hoped David Davis, the former shadow home secretary, would speak at the Tory conference event. The backing of Mr Davis, who was beaten to the party leadership by David Cameron in 2005, would sharpen opposition to the Coalition's plans from the Tory Right. Mr Davis last night said he may not have time to take part. A senior Conservative source said: "We are watching them closely and expect them to be a growing challenge." Mr Kassam distanced the British tea party from its socially conservative stances in the US. "We are less concerned with 'God, guns and gays'," he said. Robert Halfon, the MP for Harlow, one of several new Tories aligned with the movement, agreed, adding: "I'm supporting it as a protest against big government, waste and high taxes." Daniel Hannan, the Conservative MEP, is expected to speak at the conference rally. He said Mr Cameron was preventing tea-party-style MPs emerging in Britain by scuppering a plan for "open primary" elections, which in the US allow candidates to come from obscurity. The Coalition has promised 200 primaries, in which all local constituents can vote for a party's candidate. But party bosses will choose the constituencies and retain approval of candidates. "This makes primaries a weapon for the party whips," Mr Hannan said. "They can tell MPs to vote for this or that Bill or face their seat being subjected to an open primary". Tea party organisers said that the group, which currently has 2,000 supporters on Facebook, was planning to use more US-style online campaigning techniques to spread its message.British Tea Party launched
by Conservative activists to
challenge Coalition
A British Tea Party campaign inspired by the electoral
truimphs of the American movement is launching a series
of challenges to the Coalition government.
Sunday 19 September 2010
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