Saturday, August 11, 2018
Have UKIP in Wales pressed the self-destruct button in their choice of Welsh leader?
If it is clear alternatives voters are after in elections, then UKIP's Welsh members have certainly given it to them in spades with their choice of the person to lead the party in the Assembly and, if he survives that long, to represents them on the stump in 2021, when we next elect AMs.
As the BBC report, Gareth Bennett, the controversial UKIP member for South Wales Central has won a three-way battle to lead the party in the Senedd. He becomes the fourth leader of UKIP in Wales since the 2016 assembly election, which considering they started with a group of seven is pretty good going.
UKIP ordered the ballot of nearly 900 members in Wales to settle a row sparked when Caroline Jones ousted former Tory MP Mr Hamilton as group leader in May. Mr Bennett beat Mr Hamilton by 269 to 193 votes in the second round of counting. Ms Jones, who was leader for just six weeks, was eliminated after the first round with 130 votes. She is now questioning her future in the UKIP group, such as it is. They were so divided that they were apparently struggling to even hold meetings.
What this means for UKIP in Wales has to be seen. Bennett is not just a controversial figure, he is widely considered to be bigoted and offensive. He went on the record in the run-up to the Assembly elections in blaming migrants for the litter problem in Cardiff. He was banned from speaking for a short period in the Assembly chamber for making transphobic comments.
He told a constituent to get a life and move to Venezuela and invited Donald Trump to open his constituency office in Pontypridd, arguing that he and the then President-elect “had a few things in common”. He is publicly in support of abolishing the Assembly and having Wales ruled directly from London, as seen in his leadership manifesto.
Whilst on the issue of advertising for bilingual recruits he said: “This form of job discrimination must end. Effectively, the Welsh Government is discriminating against at least 80% of its own population.”
There is no doubt that these views will appeal to some voters, particularly if they are being advocated by a charismatic and articulate leader, but Gareth Bennett has neither of these characteristics. UKIP's travails are likely to continue.
As the BBC report, Gareth Bennett, the controversial UKIP member for South Wales Central has won a three-way battle to lead the party in the Senedd. He becomes the fourth leader of UKIP in Wales since the 2016 assembly election, which considering they started with a group of seven is pretty good going.
UKIP ordered the ballot of nearly 900 members in Wales to settle a row sparked when Caroline Jones ousted former Tory MP Mr Hamilton as group leader in May. Mr Bennett beat Mr Hamilton by 269 to 193 votes in the second round of counting. Ms Jones, who was leader for just six weeks, was eliminated after the first round with 130 votes. She is now questioning her future in the UKIP group, such as it is. They were so divided that they were apparently struggling to even hold meetings.
What this means for UKIP in Wales has to be seen. Bennett is not just a controversial figure, he is widely considered to be bigoted and offensive. He went on the record in the run-up to the Assembly elections in blaming migrants for the litter problem in Cardiff. He was banned from speaking for a short period in the Assembly chamber for making transphobic comments.
He told a constituent to get a life and move to Venezuela and invited Donald Trump to open his constituency office in Pontypridd, arguing that he and the then President-elect “had a few things in common”. He is publicly in support of abolishing the Assembly and having Wales ruled directly from London, as seen in his leadership manifesto.
Whilst on the issue of advertising for bilingual recruits he said: “This form of job discrimination must end. Effectively, the Welsh Government is discriminating against at least 80% of its own population.”
There is no doubt that these views will appeal to some voters, particularly if they are being advocated by a charismatic and articulate leader, but Gareth Bennett has neither of these characteristics. UKIP's travails are likely to continue.
