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A leading member of the UK Independence Party has been suspended from his post as London chairman after being accused of posting racist remarks on a magazine's website.
Paul Wiffen, who is campaigning to be MP for Ilford South, spotted an attack on his party on the social work website Community Care.
He was so incensed he fired off a reply saying: “You Left-wing scum are all the same, wanting to hand our birthright to Romanian gypsies who beat their wives and children into begging and stealing money they can gamble with, Muslim nutters who want to kill us and put us all under medieval Sharia law, the same Africans who sold their Afro-Caribbean brothers into a slavery that Britain was the first to abolish.”
Mr Wiffen was immediately dropped from his post as chairman of the London region of Ukip.
But he has been allowed to continue campaigning for the Ilford South seat and also for a ward in the Redbridge council elections.
He said: “I was very surprised to see such a party political piece on a website called Community Care, and when I read the lies about Ukip being a racist party, I just saw red, and fired off an angry email. I am truly sorry to anyone who was offended by some of the language I used.”
Ukip has also apologised for Mr Wiffen's outburst. A spokesman said : “Ukip is a party of real people, not career politicians. Real people sometimes make mistakes and when they do they should apologise. Both Ukip and Mr Wiffen have apologised.”
Mike Gapes, MP for Ilford South, said Ilford did not need BNP-style extremism. Toby Boutle, the Conservative candidate for the area, said if Mr Wiffen made the comments “then he is clearly unfit to run for office”. A spokesman for Lib-Dem candidate Anood Al-Samerai said: “I would not wish to see this man standing in Ilford South.”
Reader views (14)
wiffin/griffin we should be used to racist rants from these people, why are we surprised??
- val, ruislip middlesex, 14/04/2010 18:48
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You can stifle what people say but you can't stifle what they think - yet!
- Judith C, London, England, 08/04/2010 16:59
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Why should he not express his opinion? We still have freedom of speech do we not? Let the voters decide and no doubt they will take his remarks into account. They may agree with him or they may not, we shall see.
- Mmiguel, Old Isleworth, London, England, 08/04/2010 15:51
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Nobody objected to this guy's views when he was a Conservative, so why now?
- Keith Price, Luton England, 08/04/2010 15:26
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Ilford South is predoninately Muslim Asians. Barking has the population that Whiffin slagging off. I wonder whether he chose his words more carefully that one is being led to believe.
- Bj, East London, 08/04/2010 15:19
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"Dont see the issue in what he said really"
So you'd be unperturbed if a muslim leader said all white English people are thieves who smack their wives?
- Steve Harmer, E3, 08/04/2010 14:51
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"If David Cameron would just come out and take a very hard lined attitude towards immigration & follow through with it!"
Harder lined than Labour's policy of locking children in detention centres until they regress to bed-wetting due to stress? Whew, that's pretty hard line. You sure the BNP aren't for you?
- Tom, London, UK, 08/04/2010 14:34
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I love the way the reporter 'Kiran Randhawa' refers to the party as the UKip in an attempt to villainize them as a racist party just because some megalomaniac leader made a foolish personal statement. The UKIP are not racist and this has been clearly shown when Kilroy was given his marching orders, the party is a nice change from the traitors of the liblabcon who bow down to totalitarian Europe bureaucracy machine.
- Mikee, Reading UK, 08/04/2010 14:28
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Well UKIP are serious about making lots of expenses!
- David, East London, 08/04/2010 13:52
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I don't see why UKIP and BNP don't agree which seats to fight. why split the Xenophobic/rascist vote?
- Martin_Clerkenwell, london, 08/04/2010 13:45
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Paper thin difference between UKIP and BNP. Whiffin to Griffin? Two of a kind.
- Dhan Raj, Basildon, 08/04/2010 13:39
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Cant stand the BNP or UKIP think both parties are full of nutters & scum bags!
If David Cameron would just come out and take a very hard lined attitude towards immigration & follow through with it! he would have my vote! and would cruise this election, Gordon Brown would not stand a chance.
- Chris, London, 08/04/2010 13:35
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How can anyone take UKIP seriously?
They have a leader called Nigel.
- Anthony, Esher, Surrey, 08/04/2010 12:48
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Dont see the issue in what he said really
- Dal, Bromley, 08/04/2010 12:42
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