Ukip AM quits over party’s ‘far-right’ drift
UKIP AM Caroline Jones has resigned from the party, reducing what was a seven-strong group at the National Assembly after the 2016 election to a rump of just four AMs.
Mrs Jones, who represents South Wales West, said she was unhappy with what she saw as the party’s drift to the far right under its overall leader, Gerard Batten, an MEP who represents London.
She is also known to have been unhappy about the circumstances in which she lost the leadership of the Assembly group, a post she held between May and August.
In May, she took over as leader from former Tory MP Neil Hamilton, defeating him by three votes to two in a vote of Ukip AMs. The central party then intervened, holding a ballot of all of Ukip’s members in Wales.
Mrs Jones was opposed by Mr Hamilton and by South Wales Central AM Gareth Bennett, who ended up the victor.
Announcing her resignation during a BBC Wales interview, Mrs Jones said Mr Batten – a vocal critic of Islam – was changing the party “to a more far-right position, which a lot of the long-standing members are finding quite unfavourable, including myself ”.
She said: “I never joined the party to be part of a far-right organisation – I joined tbecause I wanted to come out of the European Union.
“Gerard Batten should listen to all sides and try to mediate and bring people together, as opposed to alienating them.
“He’s brought a lot of views into Ukip which people, the more moderate members, of the party have asked him to tone down.”
Mr Batten responded: “Her statement is politically correct twaddle to disguise the fact that Mrs Jones is politically ineffective. I wish her well languishing in the outer realms of irrelevance.”
Mrs Jones described the leadership election she lost as “shambolic from beginning to end”, saying rule changes had been introduced that allowed more people to vote than expected.
She claimed she had been the victim of “misogyny”, saying at one meeting she had been told to “shut up”, at another she’d had a pair of glasses thrown at her, and on a further occasion she was told to stop taking minutes.
Mrs Jones said: “I never liked the way that certain members in the Assembly conducted themselves in their attitude towards female members.”
Mr Bennett said he was “not totally surprised” by Mrs Jones’ exit and suggested people in the party who do not agree with its direction should “get off the train and then make it easier for the group to operate”.
He said Ukip was not moving to the far right but said not everyone in the party agreed with Mr Batten’s direction.
Mr Bennett denied the misogyny accusations. He confirmed Mrs Jones had been told to “shut up” at a group meeting but said it was not related to her gender.