UKIP news update

Today's news - and sorry for the delay.

UKIP Nationals

Still Van Rompuy,
The BBC are fronting up the reprimand this afternoon.
A former Ambassador tells us how brave the Belgians were in the Times.
Well of course there were brave Belgians, many of whom saw their actions as service to Walonia and Flanders as much as to the Belgian state.
A supportive letter in the Scotsman saying what many feel about the whole affair.
Politics.co.uk pre-reports the discipline case.
There is a supportive letter in the Express,

"MEP Nigel Farage certainly ruffled a few feathers by describing European president Herman Van Rompuy as having the 'charisma of a damp rag'...That description seems a bit harsh but doesn't it fit some of our own ministers to a tee?"

The Evening Standard gave our excellent candidate in Westminster North - of Cameronian Joanna Cash fame - the lead letter. Jasna Badzak said,

In 2005, with disillusionment with Tony Blair running high, Conservative ssociations in London attracted new members way beyond their core support - Somalis, Nigerians,Kosovans. In the 2006 local elections, a Bangladeshi grocer stood for the Conservatives in Westminster's Church Street ward to Labour's fury, and two years later a Bangladeshi grocer was elected here. In Hackney and Gospel Oak, Conservatives won seats in 2006.
Among the reinvigorated grassroots there was concern when Cameron described himself as the "heir to Blair." Then local associations sent Central Office policy suggestions which were ignored. The hug-a-hoodie approach put off Conservative voters on troubled estates and activists were appalled when Cameron used a tree-planting visit to Queens Park to announce plans for greener airline taxation.
Politically inexperienced Notting Hill-set members have been imposed on ssociations over better qualified local candidates. An agent told me I had no chance of rogressing in the party as I was not from private school or Oxbridge (I left in 2008 for UKIP and my whole branch followed me).
The electorate is not stupid and has come to see the Tories' elitism and lack of clarity, with Cameron backtracking on policy such as a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty and public spending levels. His return to traditional Tory themes at the weekend comes too late to earn people's trust. we have one of the least popular governments ever,
yet are heading for a hung Parliament at best for the Tories, and Cameron must
entirely accept the blame for this.

The Standard also reported on the case of Andrew Symeou who is in a Greek goal due to the European Arrest. This is a case where Gerard Batten, Andrew's UKIP MEP has been tireless in his working on his behalf.

UKIP Locally

William Dartmouth is given credit on the Hungaraian prisoners release by the Western Morning News

The Earl of Dartmouth, the South West Ukip MEP who has been campaigning for the pair's release, said the protests mounted by their supporters had been magnificent.
He said: "They were relentless in their pursuit of getting Michael and Jason out of prison. Their belief in them was unflagging and we can only hope they are home soon." Lord Dartmouth visited the pair in prison and took part in a delegation to the Hungarian ambassador.

William's quote also appears in the Plymouth Herald,

And Mike Nattrass is appearing in a public debate in Stoke tomorrow against George Galloway MP, Edwina Currie, the film director Ken Loach (Kes, Cathy Come Home), Mark Fisher MP.

Internationally there has been more coverage of the Van Rompuy affir.
New Europe digs in via Andy Carling. Is this an apology? Looks like a sort of apology.

"Of course not. I like Belgium and one of my hobbies is the first world war and I've spent huge amounts of my holidays in and around Belgium, thoroughly enjoying myself. I'm not insulting Belgian people, I'm making a political point that criticism of Belgium is not allowed because Belgium is a microcosm of what the EU is, an artificial construct that forces different people together in a political union. It won't work without full democratic consent." He maintained that it was these remarks about the home of the EU and not about Van Rompuy that really upset "the political elite". He added that "If anybody in Belgium took it personally, then I apologise. It wasn't meant to be about the people."

Other stories of import include the very gentle grilling of Professor Jones the man behind the Climate Gate emails.

The Telegraph highlights the number of crimes created by the Government, More crimes, more criminals.

In the Express a recent IPPR report on how wonderful mass migration is gets short shrift.

And Guardian has more on the Greek crisis.