By Anthony Webber
On Thursday 19th October there are two by-elections taking place:
One of these is Mid-Befordshire with 13 candidates standing.
There are many issues relevant to voters, but often the importance of Foreign policies is overlooked in them.
The Foreign policies of UK governments can have major implications for domestic economic situation, as has been seen with the massive increases in the costs of living and energy.
The candidates have been sent a small number of questions on the government’s Ukraine and Russia policies.
They have also been sent one on the latest Foreign policy issue, that of the conflict between Hamas and Israel, which is seeing a major rise in tension in the Middle East.
The political situation has changed greatly in the UK since the last General Election. There was a division between those pro and against the EU. Since then, the covid scenario brought about the birth of the truth and freedom movement, and new alliances were formed. Then the Ukraine/Russia conflict came about which brought about the resetting of political boundaries. Now there has been the conflict rising in the Middle East and the question of “what is in British interests and the interests of world peace,” dividing those who favour peace over those who favour war.
Here is what the candidates have been sent, followed by their responses:
For the kind attention of ..Name of Candidate
I write to congratulate you as a candidate for the Parliamentary by election on 19th October 2023.
I am reporting on the by-election and would be grateful for your views on one subject area, that of the UK government’s policies on Ukraine and Russia. The results of this brief questionnaire will be given to the local and national media
I therefore ask the following questions:
1.)The Foreign Polices of the UK government have caused major rises in the costs of living and energy, as well as other economic consequences. They have resulted in Russia becoming closer to Communist China, North Korea and other countries, instead of Western countries such as the UK. The unsuccessful efforts by the UK government on other countries to support sanctions against Russia and to supply arms to Ukraine, have been seen as coercive and bullying, and have caused reputational damage to the UK. It seems that this Foreign policy has been one of the biggest blunders in our history.
Do you believe the UK government ( and Opposition) need to urgently review UK Foreign policy in respect of Ukraine and Russia?
Yes/No….. Any comment……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
2.) The UK government, without any mandate, has been spending billions of taxpayers’ money on weaponry for Ukraine, money which is desperately needed in the UK. There is now no democracy in Ukraine, opposition parties have been shut down as have opposition media, as have a major orthodox Church. Those who want peace are not allowed a voice. There was due to be a peace agreement signed between Ukraine and Russia back in April 2022, but this was scuppered by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who offered weaponry and aid for them to continue fighting. The UK has trained thousands of Ukrainians, many of whom have been killed or wounded on the meat grinder front. The UK government has the blood of thousands on its hands for perpetuating this conflict which Ukraine has never had any chance of winning. So far, intelligence sources estimate that 1.3 million Ukrainian military have been killed, wounded, or are missing, as opposed to 79,800 Russians. These casualties are obscene.
Do you believe that the UK government should end military support to Ukraine now and change to becoming a peace- making country?
Yes/No…..Any Comments…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
3.) Since the start of this conflict, the UK government has used many of the media powers they had during covid to bring about one -sided presentation of what is going on. The public have been denied the truth because anything contrary to the UK government’s policies on Ukraine and Russia, have been no platformed.
Do you believe that there should be free and open debate on all aspects of the UK government’s ( and Opposition’s) Ukraine and Russia policies?
Yes/No….. Any comments……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
4.) This is an add on question which is optional:
With reference to the conflict in Israel which started with Hamas in Gaza, and which is worsening, do you believe that the UK government should focus on being a peace-maker in the Middle East?
Yes/No…..Any comments……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
Do you have any general comments to make?……………………………………………………………………………………………..
I look forward to hearing from you.
With all best wishes,
Anthony Webber,
Independent Political Commentator
07824444604
The candidates’ responses were as follows:
1.) Festus Akinbusoye, Conservative party:
No response received.
2.) Sid Cordle, Christian People’s Alliance:
I can’t answer your specific questions because they are loaded but I will tell you my view
- There is NO EXCUSE whatsoever for Putin invading Ukraine.
- There is a massive amount of disinformation coming out of Russia relating to the war a lot of which accuses the Ukrainians of blowing themselves up to make Russia look bad and being Nazis.
- Zelensky is woke and has been sucking up to the most woke leaders in the world including Trudeau of Canada. This does not mean he deserved to be attacked by Russia.
- Our position is to call for peace to end the war to save lives on both sides. Trump said he would end the war in 24 hours. Biden has done nothing at all to end the war only sent billions of weapons to Ukraine. We need peace negotiations urgently.
I should say that recently Lavrov the Russian foreign minister spoke at the UN and at least his comments should be used as a basis for negotiations. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s remarks and answers to media questions during a news conference following the High-Level Week of the 78th session of the UN General Assembly, New York, September 23, 2023 – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation (mid.ru)
The money we have spent on Ukraine roughly about £2.4billion is nothing compared to the money wasted on Quangos now costing £224bn. We would have one professional standards authority and do away with most of the other quangos to save money. We were right to support Ukraine after the invasion but continued support for Ukraine now should be based on them agreeing to talk peace.
Your estimates of people killed are Russian propaganda and have no bearing in fact.
There is an enormous amount of disinformation in relation to this war especially from Russia but it is possible to get close to the truth of what is happening. I use this web site. Ukraine Interactive map – Ukraine Latest news on live map – liveuamap.com
In the Middle East we have to recognise the right of Israel to defend itself from the horrific Hamas attacks including killing and decapitating babies something not reported by the hard left media ‘At least 40 babies killed’: Foreign reporters taken to massacre site in Kfar Aza | The Times of Israel
|
Now is not the time to talk about peace but that time will hopefully come very soon and when it comes we must go for it while recognising that Iran is promoting terrorism all over the world and not being fooled by what they are doing. Biden handing $6bn to Iran and also leaving $89bn of American equipment in Afghanistan has been used to promote terror. He needs to be impeached then peace will be much easier.
I hope these answers are useful.
Sid Cordle MBE
Candidate
Christian Peoples Alliance
The following additional comments were made by Sid Cordle:
Sorry yes the government have said the figures of military support is now £4.6bn. It was £2.3bn in 2022 and and another £2.3bn in 2023.
Military assistance to Ukraine since the Russian invasion – House of Commons Library (parliament.uk)
The Ukrainian Government was democratically elected on a platform of joining the EU and NATO and ending the war in the Donbass. Russia is furious that they are not a puppet regime as Belarus is and as Ukraine was. The fact is that the election in Belarus was rigged and Russia should have no claim on Belarus either.
What evidence do you have that Ukraine was to blame for ending the Minsk agreements? Zelensky was elected on a platform of ending the war in the Donbass and was committed to these agreements. It was Putin that declared in February 2022 that they “no longer existed”.
I know nothing about the April 2022 peace deal 2 months after Russia had invaded Ukraine. Were they going to withdraw?
Bless you
Sid Cordle
Christian Peoples Alliance
( Please note that whist there is sometimes debate with the candidates, it is not the purpose of this article to point out where I have a different point of view to them, so generally such debate will not be referred to. This comment applies to all the candidates who engaged on the questions).
3.)Dave Holland, Reform UK party:
Dear Anthony,
Do you believe the UK government ( and Opposition) need to urgently review UK Foreign policy in respect of Ukraine and Russia?
Our energy prices would be inflated whether we were supporting Ukraine or not because we are not energy independent and as such are too vulnerable to world events. As a member of NATO we have obligations to work with our fellow NATO nations against aggression around the world. I am not convinced that NATO have been a benign force where Russia is concerned. NATO agreed not to expand East back in the early 1990’s when Ukraine denuclearised, but instead added 13 new countries into the organisation.
We should have acted when Russia seized the Crimea in 2014, but did nothing, thus creating the current escalation. No one seems to be talking about peace talks or negotiation of a peace settlement.
Do you believe that the UK government should end military support to Ukraine now and change to becoming a peace- making country?
Much of the military support we and other countries are supplying is, I suspect not ending up on the front line where intended. As long as war is profitable I suspect that this will remain the case.
Do you believe that there should be free and open debate on all aspects of the UK government’s ( and Opposition’s) Ukraine and Russia policies?
There already seems to be plenty of debate on our Ukraine policy. Our government seem happy to give our money away to Ukraine while we can’t afford to house our homeless veterans. We as a nation seem to consider ourselves as the worlds police, helping, defending, supporting everyone except for our own people here at home.
With reference to the conflict in Israel which started with Hamas in Gaza, and which is worsening, do you believe that the UK government should focus on being a peace-maker in the Middle East?
Personally, I stand with Israel against the terrorist attack they have recently endured. I am gravely concerned about the level of support Hamas, a terrorist organisation is receiving on the streets of the cities of the UK. It is illegal to support Hamas so those supporters need to be arrested & detained. It is a disgrace that Jewish schools in the UK are having to close & that we are having to provide increased security for Jewish communities.
I don’t have a solution for peace in the middle east. The two state solution should work on paper, but requires compromises that it seems neither side are prepared to stick to. I am not convinced that that situation will improve.
Do you have any general comments to make?
The more foreign aid we seem to hand out, the more issues we seem to create back in the UK. Giving £ billions away each year doesn’t seem to be achieving the desired goal and would be better spent at home.
Best Wishes
Dave Holland
07903 416187
Mid Bedfordshire Reform Party Candidate
4.)Emma Holland Lindsay, Liberal Democratic party:
No response
5.)Prince Ankit Love Emperor of India, Independent:
Not able to contact
6.)Ann Kelly, The Official Monster Raving Loony Party:
No response
7.)Councillor Gareth Mackey, Independent:
No response
8.)Chris Rooney, Mainstream:
Hello Anthony
Thanks for mailing me. Yes I do have doubts about our Ukraine policy. The cruel and brutal Russian invasion on 24 February last year, was an appalling attack on Ukrainian civilians, not simply a “normal” war between the armed forces of two countries. However there are aspects which our politicians end media have ignored.
- Sanctions – YES I support them. They’ve caused massive rises in fuel and energy prices. But that’s our own fault, for being addicted to foreign imports. We were once world leaders in nuclear power – not any more. France gets half its electricity from nuclear. Successive governments (not just today’s Conservatives) have failed to give us energy security.
- Military aid – this is controversial. Ukraine is not a NATO member and we have no defence agreement with her. I support all humanitarian aid, and intelligence and training initiatives. But sending munitions, tanks, guns and missiles – NO. One day we may need these to defend our own country. Worse – we’ve given them hi-tech missiles, and allowed them to advertise the fact when they use them: this should have been forbidden. When Ukraine says it’s destroyed a target “using a British Storm Shadow missile” – this puts US in more danger of reprisals. Does Russia want to expand to the old USSR borders? Then their next victims would be Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania. They’re in NATO so if Russia attacks, we’re at war. “An attack on one, is an attack on all”.
- Ukraine foreign policy. If you look at the mainstream.org.uk website, our view is that there will need to be eventually, a settlement as the only way to stop the war. The Ukraine problems stem from stupid decsions by the “Western powers” (including us), lead by Bill Clinton back in 1990 when the USSR broke up. We should not have allowed the new, independent Ukraine to keep the same borders, as the Soviet Republic of Ukraine. For starters, the Crimea was NEVER a part of Ukraine; it was stuck on by Krushchev, in the 1960’s because it made the map tidier! And areas like the Donetsk are very Russian. If a bit more thought had gone into the 1990 independence settlement, the 2014 annexation of the Crimea would not have happened; and Ukraine would be at peace now.
- The Hamas terror attacks. YES to total condemnation of the attacks, and of Hamas for what it is – a terrorist organisation. But Israel’s response (so far at least) is playing right into Hamas’s hands, by area-bombing the Gaza strip. That’s exactly the response Hamas wanted, it’s killing civilans. That’s not on the same level as butchering familes, and beheading babies, in their own homes. Israel would never stoop to that. Israeli policy seems to be “it’s impossible to strike Hamas, they’re hidden underground, or embedded with civilians, so we just bomb the Palestinians”. NO. At the end of the day, both sides must accept their land is home to both Jews and Palestinians, they need to make peace. We have no military alliance with Israel or Palestine, so there must be no UK military assistance to either side.
9.)Cade Sibley, Green party:
Do you believe the UK government ( and Opposition) need to urgently review UK Foreign policy in respect of Ukraine and Russia?
1.)Without reading through the complete current foreign policy, I can’t be sure on specifics, however, I am sure there is probably plenty that needs reviewing. The Green party broadly advocates for peace and would seek to find it through acting as mediator.
Do you believe that the UK government should end military support to Ukraine now and change to becoming a peace- making country?
2.)No. As it stands, Russia is still occupying Ukrainian territories and until they withdraw, we believe that the Ukrainian people should be provided with the equipment necessary to defend their sovereignty and their independence. We utterly condemn the actions of Putin and those that committed atrocities under his direction, and believe that the UK and other governments should work closely with the UN to mediate a withdrawal agreement.
Do you believe that there should be free and open debate on all aspects of the UK government’s ( and Opposition’s) Ukraine and Russia policies?
3.) Yes, I believe that the media has a duty to offer well balanced, unbiased information on developing events. The media should seek to inform, not direct public opinion and should be a platform for open discussion.
With reference to the conflict in Israel which started with Hamas in Gaza, and which is worsening, do you believe that the UK government should focus on being a peace-maker in the Middle East?
4.)Our first thoughts within this conflict are towards the many innocent people on both sides who have lost their lives. We call for an immediate end to the violence to prevent further bloodshed on either side of the divide. Britain has a responsibility both as a member of the UN security council, and as a previous steward of the territories to act as mediator and help to broker a peace agreement between Israel and Gaza.
10.)Alistair Strathern, Labour party:
No response
11.)Alberto George Thomas ,Heritage party:
No response
12.)Alan Victor, True and Fair party:
No response
13.)Antonio Daniel Vitiello, English Democrats party:
Do you believe the UK government ( and Opposition) need to urgently review UK Foreign policy in respect of Ukraine and Russia?
Yes, it was a mistake for the UK government to get involved with this so-called “war” in the first place.
Do you believe that the UK government should end military support to Ukraine now and change to becoming a peace- making country?
Yes absolutely, but this does not mean eroding the Subjects Arms clause under the (English) Bill of Rights of 1688 / 1689. Which despite being called a “bill” has infact been enacted as Primary Legislation in the same way as the Human Rights Act 1998 and Equality Act 2010. Interpreted through both of these acts, the Subjects Arms clause applies to not only Protestants, but also subjects of any religion or none.
Do you believe that there should be free and open debate on all aspects of the UK government’s ( and Opposition’s) Ukraine and Russia policies?
Yes, and the same applies to the Covid 19 pandemic, Coronavirus and the experimental vaccine which has killed and injured so many lives. Concerning which, criminal homicide charges need to be brought against those responsible.
With reference to the conflict in Israel which started with Hamas in Gaza, and which is worsening, do you believe that the UK government should focus on being a peace-maker in the Middle East?
As a traditional Catholic, I believe the Holy Land must remain a safe and peaceful place of pilgrimage. I submit to the doctrine “bellum iustum” of St. Augustine & St. Thomas Aquinas concerning the criteria for just war.
Do you have any general comments to make?
NATO had its day by protecting us from the UssR, however we need to move on, as does Washington, and the European nations. It would be an advantage for us to have a peaceful relationship with Russia, which is the largest country in the world and has unbelievable natural resources.
End of candidates’ responses.
……………………………………………………………….
The election issues have focussed on:
GP’s appointments and problems with the NHS
Housing and high Mortgage interest rates
Rising costs of living and rampant energy costs
The candidates have largely avoided the influence of UK government Foreign policies on all the above issues.
The fact that a number of candidates did not understand this is poor.
The fact that many did not bother to answer the candidates Foreign policies questions is appalling.
How can you be fit for office if you can be so disparaging and dismissive of key election issues”
Some candidatea seem to want to only want election issues which suit them!
Safe issues which they can offer PR soundbites on.
They need to be asked just why they avoided key issues?
Why it is important to complete election questionnaires:
It is part of demonstrating that the individual candidate is a servant of the public .
Rather than expecting the public to serve them with their votes, for nothing in return.
It is very easy for a candidate to say they have not the time to do these things, but is that the attitude they are going to display if elected to Parliament?
There is a saying, “ask a busy person to do something, and they can be relied upon to do it.”
This applies to elections and politicians, even though there can be exceptions to this.
To me, it is very concerning when people wanting to get elected, try and avoid answering questions.
It smacks of double standards when such people demand free debate on selective issues, but not on other very important issues.
The government’s policies on Ukraine and Russia are causing major harm to the cost of living of UK citizens .
This is a major election issue!
The policy on the Israel and Palestine is also a major issue and a major threat to world peace.
These policies cannot be ignored! It is wrong to pretend they are not there and do not cause damage!
It is dishonest and dishonourable to try to sidestep these issues.
Have the main political party candidates been instructed to avoid commenting on these issues?
This questionnaire is intended not just to obtain candidates’ opinions, but to open up well overdue debate on this and other issues. This is so vital if we are to have a free and democratic society.
The main parties and some others want candidates to go into denial. It is not good for democracy.
Therefore, great credit is due to those who fully completed the questionnaires , and those who made some further comments.
It is with dialogue that it is possible to resolve the pressing political issues of the day..
Another important point is if a candidate being prepared to engage with those they disagree with:
If such a person becomes elected at least there is an indication that they will engage with you, rather than ignore you as some constituency MP’s do.
The summary of candidates’ responses was:
Five candidates responded.
Seven candidates did not respond
One candidate was not contactable
The candidates who did not respond were given multiple opportunities to do so, so no excuse.
Conclusions from the feedback from the questionnaire sent to the candidates in the by-election:
1.) There was some support for reviewing UK government foreign policy on Ukraine.
2.) There was some support for ending military expenditure on Ukraine.
3.) There was general support for free and open debate on the UK government’s Ukraine policies.
4.) There was general support for the UK government to be a peacemaker in respect of Israel and Palestine.
5.) It is clear that some candidates were misled by poor quality information on the issues in the old mainstream media.
Here is a List of candidates below plus details of last election results:
| 2023 Mid Bedfordshire by-election[44] | ||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||
| Conservative | Festus Akinbusoye | |||||
| CPA | Sid Cordle | New | ||||
| No description | Prince Ankit Love, Emperor of India | New | ||||
| Reform UK | Dave Holland | New | ||||
| Liberal Democrats | Emma Holland-Lindsay | |||||
| Monster Raving Loony | Ann Kelly | |||||
| Independent | Gareth Mackey | New | ||||
| Mainstream | Chris Rooney | New | ||||
| Green | Cade Sibley | |||||
| Labour | Alistair Strathern | |||||
| Heritage | Alberto Thomas | New | ||||
| True & Fair Party | Alan Victor | New | ||||
| English Democrat | Antonio Vitiello | New | ||||
| Majority | ||||||
| Turnout | ||||||
General election 2019: Mid Bedfordshire[10]PartyCandidateVotes%±%ConservativeNadine Dorries38,69259.8–1.8LabourRhiannon Meades14,02821.7–6.7Liberal DemocratsRachel McGann8,17112.6+6.6GreenGareth Ellis2,4783.8+1.0IndependentAlan Victor8121.3NewMonster Raving LoonyAnn Kelly5360.8–0.3Majority24,66438.1+4.9Turnout64,71773.7–3.0Conservative holdSwing+2.4%
END
Anthony Webber
Independent Political Commentator
Opinions from the Unity News Network (UNN) editorial team & various contributors. | UNN always clearly distinguishes between news and opinion pieces and as an open minded outlet we publish views from a variety of people and organisation that do not necessarily reflect the views of UNN or its writers. Articles published under UNN Opinions are always opinion pieces and if published on behalf of a contributor will contain that authors name at the start of the piece.
