Obituary – Ian (‘Lofty’) Lofthouse: 1966-2023

H&D recently received the sad news that former England First candidate, Ian (‘Lofty’) Lofthouse had died on February 18^th at Royal Blackburn Hospital, after a very short illness, aged only 56. 

In 2007 Lofty stood as an EFP candidate in Higher Croft ward in south-east Blackburn, which at the time was a Labour/Liberal Democrat marginal.

He polled 266 votes (15.2%) coming third, and beating the Tory candidate by three votes! 

What will surprise younger readers is that this was not regarded as a particularly good vote – for that time! We had hoped to poll 20% and maybe get a second place. My, how times have changed for nationalist candidates – who would almost bite your hand off for that sort of vote now! 

Although not active for many years, Lofty was a regular fixture at most of H&D’s Memorial Meetings (including our most recent one in Preston in September 2022), and at nationalist and loyalist social-events in Blackburn and Preston. 

Both H&D‘s assistant editor Peter Rushton and myself had known Lofty for almost 20 years. He was not “everybody’s cup of tea” I grant you, and in the pub he never volunteered to buy a round! But that was just Lofty for you! 

Lofty was a massive football fan, and for many years followed his beloved Blackburn Rovers, both home and away. In latter years he did not go to Ewood Park very often – the prices scared him off! Instead, he would come along with us to watch non-league football at Chorley FC. 

It’s ironic that in the new issue of H&D magazine the lead story is – “Should nationalists follow and/or support professional sports teams?” – Lofty’s answer would have been a 100% yes. He supported “England” in almost every sport going, not just football, cricket, and rugby, but even athletics, tennis and even swimming! 

It is incredible to think that it was only just over three years ago that we were with him at the funeral of Lofty’s father (Brian Lofthouse), in Pleasington, Blackburn. Which is where his funeral will take shortly. Lofty – we will miss you buddy.

Mark Cotterill
Editor, Heritage and Destiny

Former BNP activist back in Court

A 40-year old Blackburn man, described by his teenage girlfriend as ‘controlling’ subjected her to two brutal assaults in the space of two weeks. Earlier week Blackburn magistrates heard in the first attack the girl was punched in the face and grabbed round the throat.  In the second she was repeatedly punched and then kicked as she lay on the floor before being kneed in the crutch.

Ian Hindle, 40, of Church Walk, Blackburn, a former BNP activist pleaded guilty to two charges of assaulting Tania Derbyshire. He was remanded in custody for the preparation of a pre-sentence report.

Catherine Allan, prosecuting, said Miss Derbyshire had been in a relationship with Hindle since just after she turned 16 (sixteen) after meeting him through Facebook.

“The prosecution say he has groomed a vulnerable person who has only just turned 18,” said Miss Allan. “He introduced her to drugs and there has been a previous history of violence against her.”

Miss Allan said on the first occasion Miss Derbyshire had gone to his sister’s home and waited for him. “He arrived 30 minutes later, high on drugs, and accused her of cheating on him,” said Miss Allan.

“He punched her on the head and then grabbed her by the throat and pushed her against a wall.”

The second incident happened at Hindle’s home. He dragged Miss Derbyshire upstairs by her hair where he repeatedly kicked and punched her.

Jonathan Taylor, defending, said Hindle was addicted to crack cocaine and that impacted on his behaviour.

Hindle’s mother – Florence Hindle (who was a leading supporter of Nick Griffin) – was secretary of Blackburn BNP branch and stood as a BNP candidate in local elections on numerous occasions, including Mill Hill ward in 2007, where she stood against England First candidate Kevin Shaw.  Mr Shaw had been tipped by many to win, but acting on Nick Griffin’s instructions Ms Hindle split the nationalist vote and handed what should have been a nationalist victory to the Labour Party.

Ian Hindle’s first conviction for sex offences was in 2008, when he was given a three-year sentence for offences involving 14-year-old girls.  Also sentenced in this 2008 case was Hindle’s fellow BNP activist Andrew Wells, a well-known organised crime figure in the Blackburn area. Perhaps the most serious aspect of this case is that Wells was also involved in recruiting (among both nationalists and criminals) for a security company employed by NATO forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Labour, the BNP and UKIP: getting the facts straight

A pro-UKIP blog – anticipating an “anti-racist” smear campaign at the Heywood & Middleton parliamentary by-election – has decided to get UKIP’s retaliation in first by attacking a North West Labour councillor’s past membership of the BNP.  In doing so, the Nope not Hope blog – whose story was also picked up by the American-based online news magazine Breitbart.com – shamelessly plagiarised several stories published on this website as long ago as 2010.

More seriously, the pro-UKIP blog made no fewer than five basic errors: quite an achievement when the (correct) basis of the story is copied from someone else’s work.

Error 1: Trevor Maxfield was never a BNP councillor.  As we wrote in our original article on his defection to Labour, Cllr Maxfield (or ‘Max’ as he is known to his friends, whether in the BNP, Labour or Darwen’s pubs) was a BNP organiser in his home town about a decade ago – but not a BNP councillor.  (In fact the BNP has only ever had one councillor in Blackburn with Darwen: Robin Evans, elected in a Mill Hill ward by-election in 2002.)

Error 2: ‘Max’ was never a member of the England First Party (EFP).  He was on the verge of defecting to the EFP in 2006 after the party’s two council victories, but Darwen politics was then turned upside down by the decision of millionaire (and former Lib Dem) Tony Melia to launch the ‘For Darwen Party’, campaigning for a separate town council.  ‘Max’ became one of For Darwen’s most important organisers, and in 2007 was elected as a borough councillor for Earcroft ward on Blackburn with Darwen council – not for the BNP, but on the For Darwen ticket. He also became a town councillor for Earcroft on the new Darwen Town Council that was created as a consequence of For Darwen’s campaign.

Error 3: The Nope not Hope blog put themselves at grave risk of legal action by falsely stating that ‘Max’ was “described by his predecessor as being one of the ‘drug dealers and football hooligans’ who made up the local branch of the BNP.”  Former BNP councillor Robin Evans did make this statement, but he was not talking about ‘Max’!  He was referring to a group of Blackburn BNP activists led by Andrew Wells, a well-known football hooligan later imprisoned for under age sex offences.

Error 4: While keen to throw as much mud at ‘Max’ as they can, Nope not Hate‘s Ukippers clearly don’t know that their target’s nationalist associations go back a lot further than a decade.  During the late 1980s he was involved with the ‘Flag Group’ faction of the National Front.

Error 5: The photograph highlighted by Nope not Hate was taken at a Heritage and Destiny social event in Blackburn, not Bradford.  Moreover the blog claims that a “luminary of the far right” called “Dave Smith” was also in the picture.  Presumably they mean the late Dave Brown, whose obituary accompanied the photo.  Dave Smith is another Labour councillor in Darwen: he has no connection with the BNP, Heritage and Destiny or any other nationalist organisation.

So aside from all these basic errors by Nope not Hate, what are the actual facts of ‘Max”s association with the Labour Party?

As we explained in 2010, For Darwen – including ‘Max’ – ended up in a coalition with Conservative and Lib Dem councillors ruling Blackburn with Darwen.  However after a row over council cuts – specifically over the closure of a swimming pool in a white working class area – ‘Max’ and one of his For Darwen colleagues effectively overturned the council leadership in September 2010 by voting with Labour.

‘Max’ himself later defected to Labour and in 2011 was re-elected as a Labour councillor for his ward, as we again reported at the time.

It’s quite obvious why Blackburn Labour Party ignored Max’s political record: he held the balance of power and put them back in control of the council! This really had nothing at all to do with Liz McInnes, as she is a councillor in Rossendale, which although sharing a constituency with Darwen is in a different council. (Rossendale & Darwen is one of those constituencies that cross council boundaries.)

The closest connection between McInnes and Max is that they both gave endorsements to Jack Straw’s son Will in his (successful) campaign to win the Labour parliamentary nomination for Rossendale & Darwen.

In many ways the most bizarre aspect of the story is UKIP’s pious pretence of ‘anti-racism’, which leads them to attempt a futile ban on ex-BNP members – even though a prominent UKIP activist in Scotland is a former member of the ultra-hardline American national socialist movement National Alliance!

The truth is that UKIP has many ‘racist’ members and officials, but their ‘racism’ is of a petty, reactionary kind.  Essentially UKIP is a neo-Thatcherite party, most of whose policies and attitudes are symptoms of (not cures for) our national problems.

 

England First Party campaign update – local elections 2007

Campaigning is now underway in 5 of the 6 wards we are contesting. Every ward we are fighting has now been completely leafleted or is close to being fully leafleted. Our first report is from the Cliviger with Worsthorne ward where our Chairman Steven Smith is standing. He has been leafleting the ward with his helpers regularly for nearly 12 months. The first election leaflet was distributed round the whole ward last week and the second leaflet is currently being compiled. Steven faces competition from 6 other candidates: Labour, Liberal Democrat, Conservative, BNP, Green Party and an Independent.

In Kevin Shaw’s ward, Mill Hill, which is in Blackburn, the ward has now been leafleted twice in the lead up to the election. There are encouraging signs that there is strong support for Kevin and a local tradesman has even placed a ‘Vote England First Party’ poster in his window. In Kevin’s ward he faces competition from Labour, Liberal Democrat, Conservative and the BNP. Kevin is the only candidate who lives in the ward and he feels this puts him in good stead with the voters.

In Clitheroe, Paul Frankland is contesting the Primrose ward. There are 5 wards in the scenic Ribble Valley town which is dominated by the castle which dates back to the 12th century. Paul faces competition from two Conservative candidates and two Liberal Democrat councillors. Clitheroe only holds elections every four years and there are two seats up for grabs. The whole ward was leafleted earlier this year and the first election leaflet was delivered to every house just last week. His second leaflet has now been printed and folded and is ready for distribution which will be later this week.

Steady progress is being made in Higher Croft, another ward located in Blackburn. Just over half of the ward has been leafleted. The ward is 96% white as per the 2001 census figures. It is situated in the South East of the town and is made up of terraced housing, new modern estates and old council housing. The candidate is Ian Lofthouse and he faces competition from Labour, Liberal Democrat and Conservative.

England First Party in the Media: The Bolton News, 8 Feb 2007

The Bolton News, 08 Feb 2007: Battle on to replace disgraced councillor
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BURNLEY will go to the polls next week to decide who will replace disgraced ex-councillor Mozaquir Ali in Daneshouse with Stoneyholme. And for the first time a candidate for the England First Party will be standing in the town.

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The candidate is Steven Smith, one of four candidates bidding for the seat, left vacant when Ali was sacked for electoral fraud.

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The far-right England First Party surfaced in Blackburn last year, when Couns Mark Cotterill and Michael Johnson were elected to the council.

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Voters in next Thursday’s Burnley elections will also choose a replacement for Brunshaw councillor Donald Hall, who died last year.

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However, neither vote will affect the balance of power in the council chamber since the the Liberal Democrat and Conservative coalition holds a majority of five over Labour.

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The full list of candidates for Daneshouse is: Shah Hussain (Labour); Mohammed Malik (The Liberal Democrats); Alan Marsden (Conservative) and Steven Smith (England First). In Brunshaw the candidates are: Karen Baker (Labour); Tony Coulson (Conservative); Allen Harris (Liberal Democrat); Paul McDevitt (British National Party).

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Mozaquir Ali, of Brougham Street, Burnley, was found guilty of conspiracy to defraud the returning officer following a trial at Preston Crown Court last year. He was sacked from the council when he failed to appeal against his conviction for which he was sentenced to 18 months in jail.

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His co-accused Manzur Hussain, of Milner Street, is still an independent councillor for Daneshouse and Stoneyholme, despite also serving 18 months, because he appealed against his conviction.

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Coun Hall, a long-serving councillor and former paratrooper, died in December, aged 59, after a heart attack.

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Alison Morville, Burnley Council’s elections officer, said: “Two electors from the borough have written to the council asking for a by-election to fill the vacancies.”

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The current make-up of the council is Liberal Democrat 15, Labour 15, Conservative 5, BNP 7 and Independent 1.

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Original source [external site]

Campaign update: England First Party’s first ever Burnley candidate

Burnley EFP organiser, Steven Smith, will be the England First Party candidate for the forthcoming Burnley by-election, in Stoneyholme with Daneshouse ward, due to be held on Thursday 15th February.

Steven will be the EFP’s first ever Burnley candidate and has already started his campaign in the ward. Any EFP members or supporters wishing to come over and help Steven’s campaign in Burnley, should call party HQ on 07833 677484- Steven needs all the support he can get. He is prepared to put his head above the firing line in this very ‘diverse’ part of Burnley – don’t let him down.

If you can’t get over to Burnley to help on the ground, you can still help by sending in a donation to help with the high costs of running the campaign. Please make Cheques or Postal payable to ‘England First Party’ and post to our postal address (see the Contacts page here).

You can also make a donation online using PayPal using our Donation page here.

Steven will be up against three other candidates from the ‘old gang’ party’s – Shah Hussain (New Labour), Abdul Malik (Liberal Democrat) and Alan Marsden (Conservative). The by-election was caused because former Liberal Democrat Councillor Mozaquir Ali, was jailed for 18 months for election fraud!

There is another by-election in Burnley on the same day. The BNP are standing Paul McDevitt in the very marginal Brunshaw ward – which they have a good chance of winning. Brunshaw was once a BNP stronghold, but their former Councillor Stow defected to the Monster Raving Loony Party two years ago. It is also very encouraging that the local BNP branch decided not to put up a candidate against Steven and split the nationalist vote (as Blackburn BNP recently did in East Rural ward) in Stoneyholme with Daneshouse ward. The EFP would like to thank Christian Jackson and David Shappcott for their common sense and for not bowing to pressure from the BNP’s regional organiser Roy Goodwin – who instructed them to stand against the EFP whenever and where ever they could.