Category Archives: UK

Ukip will take no action against candidate who claimed multiculturalism is responsible for ‘Islamic terror’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Martyn FordNo further action has been taken by Ukip against one of its Welsh parliamentary candidates who condemned diversity and the notion of a multicultural society.

In October the party said that Martyn Ford, who will stand in Swansea West at next May’s general election, would be reported to its national executive committee. But now Ukip says there was no need to do that because he had already been given a “final warning” before we raised the contents of a leaflet distributed in the constituency.

The leaflet stated: “Islamic terror. Abuse of our children. The consequence of multiculturalism.” It went on to quote critical remarks made by Mr Ford about Muslims, immigration and the “political elite”.

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Coalition formed in Portsmouth to fight against the rise of Ukip

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Portsmouth anti-UKIP coalitionYou’re not welcome here – that was is the message to Ukip from a newly-formed coalition. Last night, around 40 members of various political parties and concerned residents met to discuss ways they could fight what they describe as a ‘racist’ party. Three police officers manned the doors of the meeting in Southsea.

In May, Ukip won six seats on Portsmouth City Council, including that of the long-standing Fratton councillor Mike Hancock. And its leader Nigel Farage said in The News his party was hoping to clinch the Portsmouth South seat at next year’s general election.

Issues including recession, austerity, a lack of social housing and poverty were given as potential reasons for the rise in support for the party. Speakers said they believe Ukip and its members across the country are blaming people’s concerns around issues such as strains on the NHS, housing and schools on immigrants.

Jon Woods, chairman of Portsmouth Trades’ Council, was one of the speakers. He said: “People can unite around the need to stand up to Ukip. Farage is a con artist. We’re legitimising them through parties working with them on Portsmouth City Council.”

Zuber Hatia, a prominent figure in Portsmouth’s Muslim community and a community activist, said he and mosques in the city had been targeted by racists in the past. “We’ve seen the mosques targeted by the English Defence League, the British National Party and Britain First,” he said.

“What Ukip try to project to ordinary people is they are not racist. Ukip are liars. We need people to come together who have an anti-Ukip voice and challenge them. We will carry this momentum over the coming weeks and months and hopefully we can develop a coalition to stand up against them.”

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Pubs crisis: ‘Teetotal Muslims to blame’ says Tory peer

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Lord HodgsonA former boss of Midland brewer Marston’s has blamed Britain’s growing Muslim population for the collapse in pub numbers.

Tory peer Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts made the claim in a debate on whether to grant more freedom to landlords tied to big firms. He said “socio-economic factors” such as a growing number of teetotal Muslims living in Britain, played a much bigger role in the decline in pubs than “rapacious” chains.

As Robin Hodgson, the politician was MP for Walsall North for three years until he lost the seat at the 1979 general election. He joined the Lords in 2000 and was a director of Wolverhampton-based Marston’s from 2002.

MPs voted through a cross-party amendment to the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill, which would allow tenants to opt out of being required to sell only alcohol provided by their pub company. Business minister Baroness Neville-Rolfe said the Government would accept the principle of the amendment and seek to make it workable.

But Lord Hodgson said he was “very disappointed” the Government was not going to consider overturning the Commons defeat. The Tory peer said the issue was not as “simple and straightforward” as MPs thought and the pub sector was “under serious strain” for other reasons.

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EDL planning to protest against Dudley mosque

Posted on by Bob Pitt

EDL Dudley protest ad

The English Defence League is planning to return to Dudley in protest at the controversial decision to grant planning permission for a new mosque. The far-right protest group intends to hold a demonstration in the town on February 7 according to one of its Facebook pages.

Dudley Muslim Association is locked in a long battle with Dudley Council over a proposal for a mosque on land off Hall Street. Earlier this month, the association won planning permission for the mosque. But it faces at least two court hearings and legal wrangles lasting at least two years before it can be built. In an attempt to avoid the escalating court costs and resolve community disharmony, Muslim leaders say they will consider alternative sites.

On a Facebook page purporting to belong to the EDL’s Dudley branch two pictures were added, one giving the date of a ‘Dudley Demo’ on the backdrop of a St George’s flag, with ‘no surrender’ written underneath. Another picture has ‘Dudley we are coming’ written on it.

The EDL came to Dudley to demonstrate against the planned mosque in 2010. Violence broke out and parts of the town were brought to a standstill after around 600 followers of the group descended.

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Britain First are still using fake stories to peddle their ‘message’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Britain First exposes Star City logo
Britain First exposes the Islamification of Star City earlier this year

Britain First are still peddling propaganda videos of their Birmingham branch protesting a ‘Muslim only’ cinema despite the story being rubbished months ago.

Vue Cinema in the Star City entertainment complex was accused of turning away customers based on religion back in July. Leon Jennings claimed he and his friends were denied entry because they “did not look like they celebrated Eid”, a story which was picked up in the Mirror and Daily Mail.

The centre’s manager, however, denied the allegations stating the men had been turned away simply because it was too busy. Local police soon confirmed they had received no complaints into the alleged incident either.

This didn’t stop Britain First leader and self-appointed defender of all things British, Paul Golding, from storming down their with some heavies to confront the manager. In the video, re-posted again on Monday on their Facebook page, the group are allowed into the building with absolutely no incident but they don’t let this little fact get in the way of their mission.

Despite repeatedly denying the incident ever happened, the hapless manager is forced to listen to Golding issue a threat if it ever happens again. After sufficiently intimidating the man the burly group then set about handing out their leaflets to both Muslims and non-Muslims alike who are all quite happily enjoying their day in the centre.

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Soldier avoids jail after breaking into Chelmsford mosque and stealing Qur’an

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A soldier has walked free from court after breaking into a Chelmsford mosque and stealing a Koran.

Lance Corporal Liam King, 22, of Eastwood Park, Great Baddow, was handed a 12-month jail term, but suspended for two years, at Chelmsford Crown Court today (December 1) for burglary. He was also given a one month jail term, suspended for two years, for a charge of criminal damage.

The Afghanistan veteran, who serves in the Mortar Platoon of the 1st Battalion Royal Anglian Regiment, was seen on CCTV trying to break into the Jamia Masjid Mosque in Parkway on Sunday, November 24, last year.

He is seen on CCTV again on Monday, December 16, breaking into the mosque and returning with the £25 holy book. He is seen with two others but only King has appeared before the courts.

King was due to stand trial four weeks ago but changed his pleas to guilty at the eleventh hour.

The Chronicle published CCTV footage from the incidents that week as well as a photo of King wearing an Osama Bin Laden mask while on a stag party in Amsterdam.

Sentencing him today, Mr Recorder Rex Bryan said: “I am going to treat you as being guilty of two pieces of effectively mindless vandalism aggravated by the fact that this is a place of worship.”

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Posted in UK

Criminologist receives online threats after publishing research into Islamophobia

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Imran AwanA leading Birmingham criminologist was bombarded with vicious hate mail and violent threats just days after publishing his research into online Islamophobia. One internet troll even accused Imran Awan, of Birmingham City University, of being worse than members of the barbaric jihadist group Islamic State.

Mr Awan said he was shocked by the sheer number of “vitriolic hate-filled” messages he received after an online discussion about his detailed research on anti-Muslim abuse on the internet. He revealed how he received anonymous threats and how one far-right website had even put him “under official investigation” – labelling him a “troublemaker”.

Mr Awan said: “My research attempted to show how hate groups on the internet, especially Twitter, were using this space to intimidate, cause fear and make direct threats against Muslim communities. That has particularly been the case since the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby in Woolwich last year.

“So it’s quite ironic that I became a victim of this type of abuse after I discussed my findings on a popular internet forum earlier this month.”

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British Muslims face worst job discrimination of any minority group, according to research

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Muslims are facing the worst job discrimination of any minority group in Britain, according to new research which found that they had the lowest chance of being in work or in a managerial role.

Muslim men were up to 76 per cent less likely to have a job of any kind compared to white, male British Christians of the same age and with the same qualifications. And Muslim women were up to 65 per cent less likely to be employed than white Christian counterparts.

Muslims were the most disadvantaged in terms of employment prospects out of 14 ethno-religious groupings in the UK, researchers Dr Nabil Khattab and Professor Ron Johnston found using data from the Office for National Statistics’ Labour Force Survey of more than half a million people. Skin colour made little difference to the figures.

Dr Nabil Khattab, of Bristol University, said the situation was “likely to stem from placing Muslims collectively at the lowest stratum within the country’s racial or ethno-cultural system due to growing Islamophobia and hostility against them.

“They are perceived as disloyal and as a threat rather than just as a disadvantaged minority,” he added. “Within this climate, many employers will be discouraged from employing qualified Muslims, especially if there are others from their own groups or others from less threatening groups who can fill these jobs.”

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Top Ukip aide linked to race hate groups and has BOASTED of taking part in far‑right demonstrations

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Misty ThackerayA top Ukip aide boasted of taking part in far-right demonstrations. Arthur Thackeray, the taxpayer-funded chief of staff for the party’s Euro MP David Coburn, told of marching with the English and Scottish Defence Leagues.

The revelations will hugely embarrass UKIP leader Nigel Farage, who has ­repeatedly insisted his party is not racist.

Thackeray, 53, from Glasgow, was put on the public payroll by Mr Coburn, one of 24 Ukip candidates elected to the ­European Parliament in May this year.

But just two years ago Thackeray boasted on Facebook about taking part in an SDL demo in Glasgow on February 25, 2012. Months earlier he told how he joined the EDL at a protest in Blackpool on October 15, 2011, with “patriots old and new”.

He spelt out his support for the far-right groups in a post on September 3, 2011, writing: “I personally support the aims and objectives of the Defence Leagues. Ukip has no official party line on this issue.”

A day earlier, on the eve of an EDL demo in east London, he wrote: “To all London-bound patriots… stand proud and stay safe NS (no surrender).” When another activist urged people to join EDL to stop “Muslim paedophile gangs”, Thackeray replied: “Good post.”

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Soldier Ryan McGee jailed for making nail bomb

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Ryan McGee and bomb

A soldier said to be obsessed with far-right politics has been jailed for two years for making a nail bomb at his family’s home in Greater Manchester.

Ryan McGee, 20, was serving with 5th Battalion The Rifles when held in December 2013 at a UK base in Germany. Police found the bomb after raiding the Eccles property on another matter.

McGee had admitted making the device and having information – a book with bomb-making tips – likely to be useful to a terrorist, at the Old Bailey.

The bomb contained 181 metal screws and shards of glass. The book he pleaded guilty to possessing called the Anarchist Cookbook was published in the 1970s and also had instructions for the home-manufacturing of drugs.

The court heard when an officer found the device in a bedroom of the family’s three-bedroom house, bomb disposal experts were called in and Greater Manchester Police’s counter-terrorism unit launched an investigation.

Prosecutor Roger Smart said imitation firearms and ammunition were found along with components for similar devices, suggesting a “preoccupation that goes far beyond any amateur enthusiast’s collection”.

“He surfed the internet, he bought supplies, and he watched videos and read books about how to make explosive devices,” Mr Smart had earlier told the court.

But Mr Smart also said it was accepted that rifleman McGee was not a terrorist or intended to help a terrorist group.

He told the court McGee had links to far right groups in Europe on his computer and watched a video of two men being executed under a swastika flag. McGee also had a “keen interest in the English Defence League” and had attended one of their marches but was not a member of the group, said the lawyer.

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