April 15: UKIP leader goes a little off message
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Down to Dover for a
visit by Lord Pearson, UKIP leader to launch the
Kent campaign for his party.
We gathered at the new sea
sports centre at the harbour - chosen, no doubt, because of its
proximity to the symbolic White Cliffs.
He’s a very different character
to predecessor Nigel Farage, who was a consummate
soundbite politician. In contrast, Lord Pearson tends to ramble
somewhat but was extremely affable and charming.
I suspect he has been advised to
cultivate an image as an anti-politician, which suits his
personality.
He got full marks for honesty
when I challenged him on why UKIP was endorsing the hugely
contentious plans for a "Boris Island" airport plan off the north
Kent coast.
He clearly had no idea that was
in the manifesto and made no secret of the fact that he did not
know, telling me:
"I do not know….I do not think
so but I will have to ask a person who does. I personally do not
know the answer to that and I am not going to flannel you and
pretend that I do," adding for good measure "I’m not really a
politician, you know."
Other people might regard such a
response from as rather inadequate and poor. I must say, I
rather warmed to him for being so candid. Why can’t more
politicians be upfront when they don’t know the answer to
questions? They might find it endears them rather more to voters
than some of the standard sloganeering claptrack they tend to come
out with it.
Most interesting was his views on why UKIP was
standing down in the key Kent marginal of Rochester and
Strood, a major target for the Conservatives.
UKIP
urges supporters to back Tory in key Kent
marginal>>>
His line was that he wanted his
supporters to put aside party politics in the national interest –
that interest being, in his view, the importance of having more
Euro-sceptic MPs in the Commons after May 6. The move is
undoubtedly a small fillip for the Conservatives, who in 2005 were
aggrieved that UKIP had cost them so many votes in Kent – and
potential MPs.
It seems he wanted the party to
drop its candidate in the other super-marginal,
Sittingbourne and Sheppey, where the Conservative
candidate Gordon Henderson is said to be equally
Euro-sceptic and is having a third attempt at wrestling the seat
away from Labour. However, the local party vetoed the idea -
"That's democracy" said Lord Pearson.
UKIP
launches Kent campaign>>>>
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I had thought that Ashford Conservative
parliamentary candidate Damian Green was prevailed
upon to help Cameron prepare for tonight's first televised debate
on ITV because he used to be a TV journalist. In fact, he once
fronted a business programme on Channel 4.
It seems not. Damian says that
was not a factor when they were looking for someone to role play
Gordon Brown.
"When you're asked to do
something like that, you just tend to say yes," he said.
Mind you, it must have been
quite hard to get into character...
Green
turns Brown: read our story here>>
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Will tonight's face-off between
Brown, Cameron and Clegg set the campaign alight? We will see but
like a lot of people, I think the campaign has really failed to get
going despite the frenetic activity and constant media
coverage.
Thursday, April 15 2010
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