United Kingdom First Party

The United Kingdom First Party was a small short-lived populist, Eurosceptic[2] British political party, founded in 2009. It fielded candidates in three English regions for the 2009 European parliamentary elections: the East Midlands, the East of England and the South East.[3]

Not to be confused with Britain First.
United Kingdom First Party
LeaderRobin Page[1]
Founded2009[1]
Dissolved2010[1]
IdeologyPopulism[2]
Euroscepticism
National affiliationAlliance for Democracy
ColoursRed, white and blue
Website
www.ukfp.org

The party agreed to work with the Popular Alliance during the election, in order to achieve the two parties' goals, with both parties saying they had similar backgrounds and goals.[2]

It disbanded in 2010 after its failure in the European parliamentary elections. It was voluntarily deregistered in April 2010.[1]

Policies

The party placed its opposition to British membership of the European Union in the context of a desire to reduce "the cost, the scope and the number of layers of government".[4] It set out a brief summary of its policies, with an undertaking to develop them further after the European elections, influenced by the outcome, towards simpler taxation, smaller Government and less centralisation.

The party also claimed to believe in freedom for Britain to negotiate its own trade deals individually or as part of a trade bloc, free speech, and the ability to hold politicians to account through referenda.[5]

European Parliament election, 2009

Candidates for the European Parliament in 2009 included the journalist and former presenter of One Man and His Dog, Robin Page, and the former UK Independence Party chairman Petrina Holdsworth.

The candidates pledged to serve only one term, not to employ family members, to publish their accounts and refuse invitations to "sit on committees of the European Parliament nor attend the plenaries in Brussels and Strasbourg except in the case of a vote which the party leadership regards as of critical importance to British interests".[6]

At the 2009 European election, UK First received 74,000 votes - 0.5% of the national vote - and none of its candidates were elected.

MEP candidate list, 2009
Eastern Region South East Region East Midlands Region
Robin Page Petrina Holdsworth Ian Gillman
Bruce Lawson Martin Haslam David Noakes
John West John Petley Christopher Elliot
Peter Cole Mariann French
Len Baynes Nadine Platt

See also

References
  1. "United Kingdom First Registration summary". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  2. "Two parties from very similar backgrounds" (PDF). Popular Alliance/United Kingdom First Party. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 February 2012. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
  3. "Our candidates". United Kingdom First Party. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
  4. "Policies". United Kingdom First Party. Archived from the original on 23 May 2009. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  5. "What we stand for". United Kingdom First Party. Archived from the original on 8 June 2009. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
    - "Our policies in brief". United Kingdom First Party. Archived from the original on 23 May 2009. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  6. "MEP Statement". United Kingdom First Party. Archived from the original on 24 February 2012. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
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