BNP wins Thurrock council seat

The British National Party won a seat on Thurrock council in a by-election yesterday.

47-year-old Nicholas Geri won the Grays Riverside ward with 170 votes more than the second placed Conservative Party candidate.
Mr Geri welcomed the result, commenting: ‘We bring common sense. Things have gone the wrong way and the way that people don’t want them to go, that is why they voted for us.’
However, local Labour, Liberal Democrat and Conservative leaders have criticised the result.

Labour and Liberal Democrats have called for greater efforts to prevent this happening again, suggesting that voters must not be complacent. Conservative MP Eric Pickles stated: ‘The BNP contribute nothing to society nor do they attempt to bring answers to the issues facing our local communities.’

The by-election resulted from the death of the Labour incumbent earlier this year, and leaves the council with a Labour majority of 21.