There are local elections afoot in many parts of the East Midlands in May and the party machines are grinding into life. Sensing major defeats to Labour in North West Leicestershire, the Tories are looking for every desperate trick in the book to hang onto power… including courting the “independent nationalist” (i.e. fascist who no longer likes Nick Griffin), Councillor Graham Partner, if his blog is to be believed.
Partner was elected BNP County Councillor for the Coalville ward in 2007 but soon joined Sadie Graham’s anti-Griffin faction, bouncing in and out of the party before finally resigning the party whip in 2010 to become an “independent nationalist” (fascist without a home). Last year he was censured by the County Council for a virulently islamophobic leaflet he sent to voters, which was described as “causing harassment to people of Nigerian origin, Third World origin, Palestinian origin, Pakistani origin, any non-Christian beliefs as well as those of a liberal Christian belief”.
According to Partner’s blog:
In anticipation of those prospects [losses to Labour in a number of wards] and the Coalville defeat of the former BNP councillor, the Tories had the cheek to ask for help from Graham and his associates to fend off the Labour revival and ensure Tory victories.
We definitely take this with a pinch of salt, given the source, but it wouldn’t be unthinkable. The “anti-fascist” credentials of mainstream politicians are always secondary to their desire to hang onto power by any means necessary. If this turns out to be true, it is further proof that you cannot trust mainstream politicians to fight the fascists. The only way they will be beaten is through grassroots anti-fascist direct action.