Hindu Voice UK, May 2008

VIEW RELATED ARTICLE: "HINDUS CONTRIBUTE TO LABOUR DRUBBING"

On 1 May 2008, Britain’s Labour Party received their worst losses in local government elections in England and Wales in 40 years, losing 331 seats. They also lost the Greater London Authority election. It was a severe embarrassment and setback for Prime Minister Gordon Brown, being his first electoral test since he came to office. If the current mood of the nation persists, his party will certainly be out at the next general elections.

The main winners were the Conservative Party, who gained 256 seats, giving them a total of 786 more councilors than Labour. The Conservative candidate for the post of London Mayor, Boris Johnson (right), was also succesful, beating Labour's Ken Livingstone by a clear margin.The Liberal Democrats also made some modest gains.

The white supremacist British National Party (BNP) increased its number of councilors across England by ten, and managed to get their first elected member of the 25 seat London Assembly. The BNP won a significant 5.3% of the London Assembly vote, showing that the rise of the far-right is a real threat. A more holistic strategy will be necessary to fight their seductive rhetoric, which will include paying attention to certain real grievances that the white population have, while at the same time not bending on the principles of equality and fair opportunity for all.

It should be noted however that the Green Party won more votes than the BNP in the London Assembly elections, showing that there are more environmentalists than far right sympathizers in our midst!