Labour’s current turmoil gifts Ukip an open goal. Or at least it should do. But instead of taking the opportunity to snatch disaffected Labour voters away, the party seems at pains to trip itself up. Steven Woolfe ended up in hospital after an ‘altercation’ with a fellow Ukip MEP, while Diane James stepped down as leader after just 18 days. Two weeks on, Nigel Farage is back in the helm and it looks to be business as usual for Ukip. Yet while Farage offers stability and familiarity, his presence suggests Ukip is simply offering more of the same – and doing little to try and broaden its appeal. The prospect of a new leader, then, offers a golden chance to do just that and to try and show Ukip is a party determined to get its act together. Ukip’s National Executive Committee meets today to discuss a takeover plan after Diane James’s short-lived time at the top of the party. It could be an opportunity to move on after an embarrassing few weeks for the party. Yet on the basis of an interview with Ukip’s chairman Paul Oakden this morning – and despite the rewards on offer for the party – Ukip seems determined to drag its feet. Here’s Oakden on what happens next:
‘Initially we had hoped to get our new leader in place before Christmas. That remains the aim but the discussions today that will take place between the NEC is essentially what a sensible timeline will be to give as many people as want to the chance to apply and to lay out the eligibility criteria for that election and to put a timeframe in place that suits everyone.’
Oakden went on to say the party is ‘going to be taking our time’ and completing its leadership contest in a ‘very calm and collected fashion’. Of course, the aim to get things right this time around is understandable. But Ukip seems to be ignoring the prize offered up by the current political climate. Fed-up ‘Leave’ voters are abandoning Corbyn’s party in their droves. More than fifty per cent of Brexit supporters who opted for Ed Miliband in 2015 say they will not vote for Labour. A big chunk of this number have moved over to the Tories (14 per cent), but a sizeable portion say simply they don’t know who they would back at the next election. And for every moment Ukip prevaricates in steadying its ship, the prospect of these voters siding with the party gets fainter and fainter.
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