UKIP Manifesto 2010 General Election

In June 2009, the UK Independence Party (UKIP) beat the ruling Labour Government as well as the Liberal Democrats in the European elections, the most recent major national vote. UKIP achieved 2.4 million votes and 16.5% of the national vote. The message was clear: UKIP is here to stay.

UKIP has 12 MEPs, two Lords, and more than 100 local councillors spread across the country. Now we are asking the British people to vote in our first directly elected Westminster MPs.

While withdrawal from the European Union (EU) political superstate is central to UKIP’s message, the party has a full range of policies that have helped it grow to become Britain’s fourth largest political party.

This manifesto illustrates how withdrawal from the EU can benefit the UK right across the spectrum, from immigration to crime, tax, jobs and the economy, pensions, public services, and even through to animal welfare and Post Offices. Few realise just how much the EU now controls and interferes with our day-to-day lives, despite never having obtained permission to do so from the British people.

Europhile propagandists say that 60% of our trade and three million British jobs depend on our EU membership. This is untrue. European companies sell us more than we sell them; we are their largest client. So our trade and jobs would continue if we left the European Union, and we would benefit by escaping from its crippling over-regulation.

Today, a large majority of our national law is imposed by Brussels (for example, 72% of business regulation). All told, there are more than 120,000 EU directives and regulations in force in the UK. In addition, European Court of Justice verdicts, the EU Arrest Warrant, Europol and the EU’s body of law, Corpus Juris, all act to undermine our legal and constitutional system.

As one of the two largest contributors to the EU budget, Britain now gives £16.4bn gross p.a in cash to Brussels (£45m a day). Our net contribution amounts to £6.4bn p.a., which will rise to more than £10bn with the loss of our rebate. Including indirect costs such as red tape, the true cost of the EU to the UK is estimated at up to £120 billion a year.

The current political elite – ‘the LibLabCon- sensus’ – need to hide this massive surrender of power from the voters. They employ tactics such as introducing EU laws as obscure statutory instruments and regularly deny the reality of who actually runs our country. Some now routinely serve EU interests before those of their own country.

Yet the British people are not fooled, and a consistent majority want to leave the EU. A BBC Politics Show poll in 2009 showed 55% want out of the EU. In 2008 an ITV Luton referendum showed 54% wanting to leave. Yet nobody aged under 54 has had a chance to vote on this issue. We need a new referendum on EU membership. Only UKIP represents the majority view.

Labour and the Liberal Democrats shamefully contrived to break their last manifesto commitments and deny the British people a referendum on the appalling Lisbon Treaty (in reality an EU constitution), showing utter contempt for democracy. The Conservatives were little better, with their EU ‘Cast Iron Guarantee’ being shown to be brittle and worthless.

UKIP is the only party determined to bring power and control back to Westminster and the British people. Only UKIP will enable us to govern in the best interests of the UK.

It is time for straight talking.

Lord Pearson of Rannoch : Party Leader
Nigel Farage MEP : Chief Party Spokesman
David Campbell Bannerman MEP : Deputy Leader and Head of Policy

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