Another salvo in the UKIP/ Isle of Wight Conservative spat was fired yesterday.
Yesterday Alan Wells replied to Nigel Farage’s letter, in connection with the Conservatives accusing a UKIP candidate of falsifying official paperwork.
Alan accused Farage of “launching into a knee-jerk political attack”, making it clear that the declared intention of reporting the matter to the Police will still be going ahead.
Alan Well’s email in full
Dear Mr Farage
It is disappointing that you have not expressed the slightest concern about the impact of this serious matter on Mrs Trevett, who was extremely distressed to find that her name has been used – unbeknown to her – in this manner.
Mrs Trevett has inspected the nomination form which Mr Wilkins has submitted and the signature and handwriting purporting to be hers is false, and was not written by her.
Mrs Trevett has not “changed her mind” or “genuinely forgotten the event” – and it is hugely insulting of you to make such an unfounded suggestion. She is very clear that she did not sign Mr Wilkins’s nomination paper and the false signature she has inspected confirms this to be the case.
It would have been courteous if you had demonstrated some sympathy for this innocent lady who has been caught up in the middle of a false statement being made on your candidate’s nomination papers, rather than launching into a knee-jerk political attack, writing from your European office in Strasbourg.
I trust that you, Mr Wilkins and his agent will accept full responsibility for submitting a false statement on a nomination paper and will issue an unreserved apology to Mrs Trevett for the distress you have caused to her.
It will of course be for the police to investigate whether any criminal offence has taken place, but clearly there will be some explaining to do for how a false signature was submitted on your candidate’s nomination paper.
Yours sincerely
Alan Wells
Association Chairman
Update 14:00
No sooner had we got yesterday’s email between Alan and Nigel published, but the next email arrived, this time from Nigel to Alan, so we’re putting it below to keep them together.
Dear Mr. Wells,
Thank you for your letter, the contents of which I have duly noted.
You have, in your haste to score cheap political points, chosen to ignore the fact that, in his email of 15th. April 2013 @ 15:09, Mr. Wilkins tendered Mrs. Trevett a fulsome apology, which included an offer to repeat the apology in person. I note also that you have chosen not to address in any way the possibility that this signature may have come about because of an act of impersonation. Both those things are matters for considerable regret.
I see no need, in the light of that apology, for either myself or his agent to say more.
Your complaint that I wrote to you from Strasbourg is also a cheap shot. It may have escaped your notice, but, as an MEP, my duties take me to Strasbourg when the so-called European Parliament is sitting. It is from there that I wrote.
As leader of UKIP I am there engaged with the business of getting the UK out of the European Union, a project that has encouraged many hundreds of Tory members to resign from your party (and join UKIP) in disgust at Cameron’s utter failure of leadership on Europe and many who remain quietly to applaud and support (often financially) what we do. Your lot, on the other hand, routinely vote ‘More Europe’ at the slightest opportunity. I do not feel any need to apologise, therefore, for being in Strasbourg and doing what a majority of Britons would wish me to do.
The Police must go about their business, naturally, and if they think this matter worthy of a major investigation, then let them charge him and prove their case. On the other hand the voters on the Isle of Wight might think that police time is better devoted to catching burglars, thieves, rapists and the like: perhaps we should open up a debate on the use of police time on the island as part of this local election campaign?
Perhaps you might let us know.
Yours sincerely
Nigel Farage MEP
South Eastern Counties and Leader of UKIP
