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Liberty Great Britain
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| Chairman | Paul Weston |
| Founded | March 2013 |
| Headquarters | 207 Regent Street, London (mailing address only) |
| Ideology | Euroscepticism Culturism Right-wing populism Anti-Islamism[1] |
| Political position | Far-right[2] |
| Website | |
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Liberty Great Britain or Liberty GB is a far-right British nationalist political party.[3] It was registered with the Electoral Commission on 5 March 2013 byPaul Weston and George Whale.[4] Its three candidates in the 2014 European Parliament election in the South East England constituency received 2,414 votes (0.11%).[5]
Weston is a former UK Independence Party (UKIP) member and was one of the party’s candidates in Cities of London and Westminster at the 2010 general election.[6] He left UKIP over what he described as its failure to address issues related to Islam in Britain and founded the British Freedom Party (BFP). That party formed an alliance with the far-right English Defence League. Weston left the BFP in 2013. He has predicted that within 20 years there will be a war in Britain between the white working class and immigrants. He is married to a Romanian and claims to have been a deep sea diver, a pilot in Africa and a property developer in the Czech Republic.[7]
Liberty GB is anti-immigration, anti-fundamentalist Islam and traditionalist.[1]The group’s Facebook page describes it as “patriotic counter-jihad party for Christian civilisation, Western rights and freedoms, British culture, animal welfare and capitalism”.
2014 European election[edit]
Liberty GB stood three candidates in the 2014 European Parliament election in the South East England constituency, Weston, Enza Ferreri (Liberty GB’s media officer) and Jack Buckby (Liberty GB’s outreach officer).[8] Buckby founded the “National Culturists” while at university in Liverpool in 2012.[9] They received 2,414 votes (0.11%) placing it 14th of the 15 parties contesting the election.[5]
Paul Weston arrest[edit]
On 26 April 2014, Weston was arrested while addressing passers-by outside Winchester Guildhall. A member of the public complained to police and he was detained after failing to move on under a dispersal order. He was further arrested on suspicion of religious or racial harassment.[7][10] Weston’s speech quoted from Winston Churchill‘s 1899 book The River War about Churchill’s experiences as a British army officer in Sudan; the passage quoted was critical of Islam. Weston is a former UKIP candidate who parted with it over what he described as its failure to address issues related to Islam in Britain and then joined the British Freedom Party.[11]
Liberty GB radio host trial[edit]
Tim Burton, a radio presenter who is a member of Liberty GB, was acquitted of charges of racially aggravated harassment on 4 May 2014 at Birmingham magistrates’ court. He had tweeted comments about Fiyaz Mughal OBE, a Muslim campaigner of Tell MAMA UK.[12]
2016 Batley and Spen by-election[edit]
Following the killing of incumbent Labour MP Jo Cox, Liberty GB were the only party to contest Labour in the Batley and Spen by-election. The party’s candidate was Jack Buckby, who had been a member of the youth division of the British National Party under Nick Griffin before leaving because he deemed the BNP to be too racist.[13]
Leaders[edit]
| Year | Name | Period | Time in office | Deputy leader/s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Paul Weston | 5 March 2013 – present | incumbent |
Electoral performance[edit]
General election, 7 May 2015[edit]
The party contested three constituencies, obtaining a total of 418 votes.
| Constituency | Candidate | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birmingham Ladywood | Timothy Burton | 216 | 0.6 |
| Lewisham West and Penge | George Whale | 44 | 0.1 |
| Luton South | Paul Weston | 158 | 0.4 |
Batley and Spen by-election, 2016[edit]
The party will contest the by-election caused by the killing of Jo Cox MP.
| Constituency | Candidate | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Batley and Spen | Jack Buckby |
Alex Infohub 