In the last months I’ve been writing a series of articles for Byline Times about the Brexit Party. Last week I filed two pieces about the selection process for potential MPs and questions around the fee that has to be paid for the online application. Since then a number of registered supporters and activists have approached me with concerns. This email from a woman I have called Anna sums up how many are feeling and I reproduce it here with her permission in full (although I have made two small changes to protect her identity). If this email is indicative of wider feeling among Brexit Party activists who have been fobbed off by Farage, Tice and their cronies – the party has a major problem.
Hi Otto,
I am another qualified and experienced potential candidate who was summarily rejected by Tice’s mass email. I’m a professional, intelligent woman with a strong connection to a key Brexit Party target constituency, but I didn’t get an interview.
I became concerned a couple of weeks ago when I heard that interviews were due to conclude so I started to chase up my application – all my emails were acknowledged by the general enquiries team who told me they had passed them on to the Candidate team who then completely ignored me.
When I found your bylinetimes pieces (5th and 10th July), they made a lot of sense so I highlighted them to a Brexit Party Contact and a mate of Nigel I’d met on the campaign trail. Neither were interested (but Nigel’s crony got an interview…). I then sent a further email to the Candidate selection team, requesting specific reasons why I had not been interviewed given the strength of my case – this time I didn’t even get an acknowledgement.
All the elements of a contract seem to be present in the Brexit Party open offer to candidates (offer, acceptance and £100 consideration) so we should get what we paid for or they risk breaching contract. However, I’ve just checked my Statutory Credit Report and no checks have been made, I sincerely doubt whether my application received more than a cursory glance.
Are you aware that all applicants were strongly advised to help campaign in Peterborough, the inducement being that it would greatly help our chances of being selected? Yet no record was ever taken other than the general sign-in. Everyone I met in Peterborough was an applicant, keen to improve their chances and all at our own expense.
Farage emailed us all on the 8th July with the same fake promise if we went to Brecon for the by-election, despite selection having more or less concluded.
When the 650 are revealed, I expect they will consist of rich, mostly male businessmen, minor celebrities and lots of ex-UKIP cronies of Nigel – with the odd working class stereotype thrown in. If 50% aren’t female (as I expect) it won’t be due to a lack of suitable applicants… These people will be allocated constituencies where they have tenuous connections and they will expect to be adored. I doubt my fellow Northerners will be duped for too long. So much for changing politics for good!
I’m still a dedicated Leaver but I won’t be helping the Brexit Party again. I hope that fellow rejectees who believe they’ve been misled will use all that energy, passion and intellect to expose the elitism and cronyism at the heart of Nigel’s organisation.
I do hope you won’t mind me remaining anonymous for the moment and I sincerely thank you for your expose. Could you please acknowledge receipt and do keep up the good work!
Warm regards,
Anna P.
Hi, I went to help at Peterborough having no intention of standing for an MP.
What I can tell you is I was in the office, I would say only about one every fifty signed in as prospective MP’s
We had hundreds of helpers show up each day over the last two weeks.
I was the person at the front desk !!
Thus, Anna P, would have found it impossible to have picked out prospective MP’s since we got helpers out of the door in groups of 3-5 within ten minutes at most.
As I say the chances of meeting up with more than one or two prospective MP”s would be very slim.
First of all, you would have to find and ask about one hundred helpers.
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Siunds like u dont like nigel
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Mmmmm
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Sounds like sour grapes to me
I’m afraid
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Bitching because she wasn’t interviewed, what makes her think she is better tgan anyone else? How many of us applying for jobs did not get interviewed. We live in a pathetic, complaints “me too” and “if I don’t get my own way, I’m going to complain” culture. The best way to end this is to stop apologising.
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When have you paid £100 for a job interview that didn’t happen?
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Signs like Nigel doesn’t really care. Quel suprise.
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I went and campaigned at Peterborough. When I signed-in, I was asked to leave an asterisk against my name if I would be applying as a candidate.
There are 650 MP candidates to be appointed and it’s been stated that over 3000 applications have been received. That means a little under 80% of applicants won’t be appointed.
I too am an educated, and qualified, person but didn’t apply because, frankly, I decided that I wouldn’t fit the selection criteria. There is an expectation that a previous business or civic background will give the applicants an advantage. Given that the role is significant, demanding, and requires people with stamina I accept that.
I am otherwise happy to help the Brexit Party either in an organisational level or as a local council candidate.
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Thanks for the comment Neil. Doesn’t it bother you a bit that those 3000 plus people have been asked to pay up in advance?
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Sour grapes perhaps?
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As my post above, I can confirm this is 100% correct::( From Neil Darlow) “
I went and campaigned at Peterborough. When I signed-in, I was asked to leave an asterisk against my name if I would be applying as a candidate.”
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I also find it very odd that just because a person is not selected , why would you start spitting blood .?
If it was me , I would look to work or help my new local MP ( to be ) within the Brexit party.
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Doesn’t it bother you a bit that 3000 plus people have been asked to pay up in advance
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I think the beard is real
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Obviously this was Anna Soubry possibly wearing a false beard.
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“Doesn’t it bother you a bit that 3000 plus people have been asked to pay up in advance”
As I’ve said , I had and have no intention of standing as an prospective MP
That amount of cash has done its job, to rid the Brexit party of time wasters in the first round.
So those that are left in, have put their money where their mouth is.
Just the type of person the party would want, I would think .
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So why does no other party charge and why is the fee non refundable and why are many people like Anna saying that their application hasn’t been properly assessed
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Wow, so a new party (that won more votes than any other in Europe, just a few weeks ago ), has to act like parties formed a hundred years ago.??
She knew the fee was non refundable
I have proved Anna had told at least one pork pie.
Don’t worry though, Oct is not that far away.
All the best.
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I’m not party political. All parties need to be held to account whether Labour, Tory, Lib Dem etc… this is dodgy stuff and there’s none so blind as the blindly loyal
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You are not fooling any body with this crap otto
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I was signed in at Peterborough as a PPC by a young lady.
I too have not been selected for interview and I too have not recorded any searches made on my name or details etc.
I will look out for the published list of Candidates and wholly expect it to contain more of the same.
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I’d be interested to hear more – my email address is theottoenglish@gmail.com – feel free to contact me in complete confidence
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I got bored before I was a third of the way through.
The gist of this is a woman wanted to be an mp for brexit party but probably just wasn’t good enough
End of “story”
Next
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No mate. Read to the end
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Gosh. Being conned by the Brexit ‘party’ (PLC). The most undemocratic party in British history? What a surprise!
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You sound like someone who has been planted by the opposition. …What was your remit …to dig up dirt on Richard or Nigel catch them us8ng some word that’s not allowed from our dictators in L9ndonstan .
You’ve been burnt ..nobody wants anything to do with u .
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“Londonistan” …. oh dear
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I put my name forward as a candidate for UKIP. I had lots to offer: success in my profession, three universities incl Oxbridge, extensively travelled, community service, anti apartheid political credentials, etc so I was surprised that certain others were preferred to me.
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The fact you thought for a second that these people were going to change politics for good, says to me you are not the right candidate. I seriously question the motives of anyone who would follow this company (stop calling in a party its a ltd company)
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