UK Independence Party: Difference between revisions
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The '''UK Independence Party''' ('''UKIP''') is a [[United Kingdom|British]] [[right (politics)|right-wing]] [[political party]] that is best-known for its call for the [[United Kingdom]] to leave the [[European Union]] and for other policies to control [[immigration]]. | The '''UK Independence Party''' ('''UKIP''') is a [[United Kingdom|British]] [[right (politics)|right-wing]] [[political party]] that is best-known for its call for the [[United Kingdom]] to leave the [[European Union]] and for other policies to control [[immigration]]. | ||
[[Nigel Farage]] is the party's interim leader. He resigned in July 2016 but returned the following October when his elected successor, [[Diane James]],<ref>''BBC News'': '[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-37387162 Diane James becomes UKIP leader]'. 16th September 2016.</ref> stepped down after 18 days. James stated that she had not "formalised" the party's nomination and Farage indicated that he had technically remained in charge, leading to some confusion over the leadership.<ref>''BBC News'': '[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-37561065 Nigel Farage steps back in at UKIP as Diane James quits]'. 5th October 2016.</ref> | |||
UKIP won the most UK seats in the 2014 [[election]]s to the [[European Parliament]]. It also has one representative in the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|UK Parliament]], [[Douglas Carswell]], who was previously a [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]] [[Member of Parliament (UK)|MP]] but defected and resigned to trigger a [[by-election]], which he successfully contested. Prior to the [[2015 United Kingdom general election|2015 general election]], UKIP had a second MP, [[Mark Reckless]], who also defected from the Conservatives. In that election, UKIP polled almost four million votes (13% of the total) but returned only one MP. | |||
UKIP won six seats in the [[Welsh Assembly]] in the 2016 elections. Their group leader is [[Neil Hamilton]], a former Conservative MP best-known for the 'cash for questions' scandal in the 1990s. The party has no seats in the [[Scottish Parliament]]. | UKIP won six seats in the [[Welsh Assembly]] in the 2016 elections. Their group leader is [[Neil Hamilton]], a former Conservative MP best-known for the 'cash for questions' scandal in the 1990s. The party has no seats in the [[Scottish Parliament]]. | ||
Revision as of 13:21, 5 October 2016
The UK Independence Party (UKIP) is a British right-wing political party that is best-known for its call for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union and for other policies to control immigration.
Nigel Farage is the party's interim leader. He resigned in July 2016 but returned the following October when his elected successor, Diane James,[1] stepped down after 18 days. James stated that she had not "formalised" the party's nomination and Farage indicated that he had technically remained in charge, leading to some confusion over the leadership.[2]
UKIP won the most UK seats in the 2014 elections to the European Parliament. It also has one representative in the UK Parliament, Douglas Carswell, who was previously a Conservative MP but defected and resigned to trigger a by-election, which he successfully contested. Prior to the 2015 general election, UKIP had a second MP, Mark Reckless, who also defected from the Conservatives. In that election, UKIP polled almost four million votes (13% of the total) but returned only one MP.
UKIP won six seats in the Welsh Assembly in the 2016 elections. Their group leader is Neil Hamilton, a former Conservative MP best-known for the 'cash for questions' scandal in the 1990s. The party has no seats in the Scottish Parliament.
UKIP campaigned for Britain to leave the EU during the 2016 referendum, but was not part of the official 'leave' campaign. Farage predicted a narrow win for 'remain' on election night and pledged to fight on. As it happened, 'leave' won with 52% of the vote and Farage retracted his comments. He resigned as leader less than two weeks later.
Footnotes
- ↑ BBC News: 'Diane James becomes UKIP leader'. 16th September 2016.
- ↑ BBC News: 'Nigel Farage steps back in at UKIP as Diane James quits'. 5th October 2016.