Friday, March 20, 2015

Ukip - 7 fraudsters, one forger, one kidnapper

This week Ukip MEP Janice Atkinson is in the news for alleged fraud, trying to get a restaurant to issue a false invoice so that she could claim more in expenses.

Last year I did a post on UKIP's record in office, their sums, and other mishaps. I confess that that old post has not kept up. I found it a bit difficult to keep up, tbh, because their errors and misdemeanors come thick and fast. they are the party that just keeps on giving. 

However, Janet has made me update the headliners, the real biggies.

So here they are : 4 Fraudsters, 1 forger, 1 kidnapper, 1 MEP uncomfortably cosy with police
UKIP was embarrassed by the jailing of two of its former MEPs.


In 2007, Ashley Mote, who represented South-east England, was jailed on 21 counts of benefit fraud, totalling £65,000.


In 2009, Tom Wise, former MEP for East of England, was jailed for two years after falsely claiming thousands in expenses.
2011 Derek Clark, Ukip MEP was investigated by OLAF, the EU anti-fraud office, and forced to repay £31,800 for money he had claimed for UKIP work.
2014, Peter Lagoda UKIP Councillor in Peterborough, defrauded the benefits system of £25,000 over 2 years. He is due to be sentenced on 28 March 2014.

2015, Janice Atkinson, see above.
Graham Booth, (d 2011)  former Ukip MEP, was forced by OLAF to repay £5,555 in overclaimed expenses, again salaries paid to people who should have been doing EU Parliament work but who were in fact working for UKIP.


In 2010 MEP Nikki Sinclaire lost the UKIP whip because she had refused to join the EFD (Europe of Freedom and Democracy, the European Parliamentary group with whom UKIP sits) on the grounds that it had "extreme views".

She was due to be charged with money laundering and misconduct in public office on September 17th 2014 at Birmingham Magistrate's Court. No record has been found of the result of this hearing.


Forger
Hugh Mennie, a UKIP electoral candidate forged three out of eight signatures on his nomination form[6]. He was found guilty, fined, and banned from politics for 5 years.

Kidnapper
Mujeeb Bhutto, UKIP’s Commonwealth spokesman left the party (reportedly to rejoin the Tories) when Nigel Farrage discovered that he had form as leader of a kidnap for ransom gang in Pakistan[7].

Snouts in Trough
Trevor Coleman Ukip MEP admitted that he only goes to Brussels to claim his expenses and allowances.

Nigel Farage boasted to journalists that he had taken £2million in expenses from the EuroParliament.


See also here

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