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Reclaim Party

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Reclaim Party
LeaderLaurence Fox
Founders
FoundedOctober 2020
Preceded byBrexit Express
HeadquartersCarlyle House
235 Vauxhall Bridge Road
London
SW1V 1EJ
IdeologyRight-wing populism
British nationalism
Sovereigntism
Political positionRight-wing to Far-right
Website
reclaimparty.co.uk

The Reclaim Party is a right-wing populist[1] political party in the United Kingdom. It was launched in 2020 by English political activist and former actor Laurence Fox, with all of its funding from a single donor, Jeremy Hosking. It does not solicit donations or charge membership fees.[2]

History

[edit]

Founding

[edit]

The party was first registered on 13 March 2019 by Jeremy Hosking as Brexit Express.[3][4]

In September 2020, Fox attracted funding for a new political party, provisionally called Reclaim,[5][6] and dubbed "UKIP for culture".[7][5] In October 2020, the party changed its leader from Jeremy Hosking to Laurence Fox.[8] It emerged in the same month that the party name had yet to be successfully registered with the Electoral Commission as there was a naming conflict with the "Reclaim Project" of Manchester, an established charity giving opportunities to working-class children.[9] In February 2021, the party changed its registered name from Brexit Express to The Reclaim Party.[10][11]

In December 2021, newspapers reported that Hosking would continue to fund The Reclaim Party.[12]

Parliamentary representation

[edit]

MP Andrew Bridgen was expelled from the Conservative Party in January 2023 for tweeting "As one consultant cardiologist said to me, [the COVID-19 vaccines are] the biggest crime against humanity since the Holocaust",[13] repeating COVID conspiracy claims and for breaching lobbying rules.[14] In May 2023, he joined Reclaim, becoming the party's first MP.[15] He resigned from the party in December 2023.[16]

Cooperation agreement with Reform UK

[edit]

On 12 June 2023, Reform UK and the Reclaim Party announced a mutual co-operation agreement for the upcoming by-elections, whereby Reform UK would stand in Mid Bedfordshire and Reclaim would stand in Uxbridge and South Ruislip.[17] Both parties lost all by-elections and lost their deposits, with Dave Kent (Reform) getting the highest support at 3.7% in Selby and Ainsty.

Platform

[edit]

The party states a sovereigntist, anti-"woke", and anti-gender outlook in its manifesto, as well as a lack of belief that there is a climate crisis.[18]

Electoral record

[edit]

2021 London mayoral election

[edit]

In March 2021, Fox announced he would stand in the London mayoral elections, in order to "fight against extreme political correctness" and to "end the Met's obsession with diversity and inclusivity".[19][20] His candidacy was endorsed by Reform UK, who stood aside for him in the election, and by Nigel Farage.[21] The major source of Fox's campaign funds was Brexit backer Jeremy Hosking,[22] who, in the first quarter of 2021, gave The Reclaim Party more than £1,000,000 in cash and services.[23]

In the mayoral election, Fox finished in sixth place with 47,634 votes (1.9 per cent), losing his £10,000 election deposit.[24][25]

2021 Scottish Parliament election

[edit]

The party stood one candidate, Leo Kearse, in Glasgow Pollok for the 2021 Scottish Parliament election; he received 114 votes (0.3 per cent), coming in eighth place on the constituency list.[26]

2021 North Shropshire by-election

[edit]

Martin Daubney, deputy leader of the party from 2021 until August 2022,[27] was the party's candidate in the 2021 North Shropshire by-election.[28] Daubney is a former Brexit Party Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 2019 to 2020, and a former journalist and editor. He finished seventh with 375 votes (0.98 per cent), losing his deposit.[29]

During the by-election campaign, a Market Drayton town councillor defected to Reclaim, becoming the party's first representative in UK local government,[30][31][32] but resigned as a councillor less than a year later.[33]

2023 Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election

[edit]

In June 2023, Reclaim Party leader Laurence Fox announced his intention to contest the 2023 Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election.[34] Fox received 2.3% of the vote, finishing fourth and losing his deposit. The winner was Conservative candidate Steve Tuckwell.[35]

2024 general election

[edit]

In the 2024 general election, Reclaim announced it would donate £5,000 to each candidate standing for re-election from other parties who agreed to a four-point culture-based pledge. Despite Conservative Party advice not to accept the money, four of its MPs did.[36][37] Prior to the election, Reclaim had stated it would field its own candidates.[38]

A few days before the election, Reclaim endorsed Reform UK.[39]

The four Conservative MPs, Andrea Jenkyns, Brendan Clarke-Smith, Marco Longhi and Karl McCartney, who had accepted the donation in exchange for backing Reclaim’s “four-point commitment to culture”, all lost their seats.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ * Edmonds, Lizzie (11 January 2022). "Laurence Fox is engaged, but who's his fiancée Arabella May Fleetwood Neagle?". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 19 June 2022. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
  2. ^ https://search.electoralcommission.org.uk/Search/Donations?currentPage=1&rows=10&query=reclaim&sort=AcceptedDate&order=desc&tab=1&et=ppm&et=tp&et=perpar&et=rd&et=pp&isIrishSourceYes=true&isIrishSourceNo=true&prePoll=false&postPoll=true&register=gb&register=ni&register=none&optCols=Register&optCols=CampaigningName&optCols=AccountingUnitsAsCentralParty&optCols=IsSponsorship&optCols=IsIrishSource&optCols=RegulatedDoneeType&optCols=CompanyRegistrationNumber&optCols=Postcode&optCols=NatureOfDonation&optCols=PurposeOfVisit&optCols=DonationAction&optCols=ReportedDate&optCols=IsReportedPrePoll&optCols=ReportingPeriodName&optCols=IsBequest&optCols=IsAggregation [bare URL]
  3. ^ "2019 Party registration decisions". The Electoral Commission. December 2022. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
  4. ^ "The Reclaim Party register entry". The Electoral Commission. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
  5. ^ a b Hope, Christopher (27 September 2020). "Laurence Fox launches a new political party to fight the culture wars". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 30 September 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2020.
  6. ^ Heren, Kit (27 September 2020). "Laurence Fox to set up new political party dubbed 'Ukip for culture'". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 2 October 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  7. ^ O'Connor, Roisin (27 September 2020). "Laurence Fox to launch new political party described as 'Ukip for culture'". The Independent. Archived from the original on 13 November 2020. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
  8. ^ "FOI 019-21 - Response (page 4)" (PDF). The Electoral Commission. Retrieved 21 February 2023.
  9. ^ Littlejohn, Georgina (11 October 2020). "Laurence Fox faces legal action from youth charity Reclaim over party name". inews.co.uk. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  10. ^ "2021 Party registration decisions" (PDF). The Electoral Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 February 2021. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  11. ^ "Laurence Fox films police officers at front door after being accused of breaking COVID rules". Yahoo!. 24 March 2021. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
  12. ^ Penna, Dominic; Hope, Christopher (13 December 2021). "Former Conservative donor to pump further £5m into Laurence Fox's Reclaim Party". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 18 December 2021. Retrieved 18 December 2021.
  13. ^ Iacobucci, Gareth (11 January 2023). "Covid-19: Tory MP is suspended after comparing vaccines to The Holocaust". BMJ. 380: 81. doi:10.1136/bmj.p81. ISSN 1756-1833. PMID 36631157.
  14. ^ "'Biggest crime since Holocaust': British MP suspended over COVID tweet". euronews. 11 January 2023.
  15. ^ Whannel, Kate (10 May 2023). "Ex-Tory Andrew Bridgen joins Laurence Fox's Reclaim party". BBC News.
  16. ^ Andrew Bridgen [@abridgen] (20 December 2023). "A statement by Andrew Bridgen MP" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  17. ^ Noyce, Eleanor (12 June 2023). "Reform UK and Reclaim parties announce deal to boost chances in by-elections". The Independent. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
  18. ^ "Manifesto". Reclaim Political Party. Retrieved 25 July 2024.
  19. ^ Bayley, James (20 April 2021). "Laurence Fox pledges to 'end the Met's obsession with diversity'". MyLondon. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
  20. ^ Hope, Christopher (6 March 2021). "Laurence Fox exclusive: I'm standing for London Mayor to offer a voice to those being dominated into silence". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  21. ^ Murphy, Joe (22 April 2021). "Nigel Farage backs Laurence Fox in London mayoral race". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  22. ^ Smith, Robbie (19 April 2021). "Londoner's Diary: Laurence Fox's Reclaim party has banking problems". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  23. ^ Walker, Peter (3 June 2021). "Laurence Fox's political party received almost same donations as Lib Dems". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  24. ^ Sinclair, Leah (9 May 2021). "Laurence Fox loses £10,000 deposit in London mayor bid". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  25. ^ "Results 2021". London Elects. 9 May 2021. Archived from the original on 8 May 2021. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
  26. ^ "Constituencies A-Z: Glasgow Pollok". BBC News. Archived from the original on 7 May 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  27. ^ Marlow, Ben (23 November 2022). "Incredibly, the Tories have squandered another year of Brexit". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  28. ^ "North Shropshire by-election 2021: The candidates standing". BBC News. 19 November 2021. Archived from the original on 17 November 2021. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  29. ^ "North Shropshire parliamentary by-election | The result". www.shropshire.gov.uk. Shropshire Council. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  30. ^ "Tory Shropshire councillor defects to Reclaim". The Spectator. 6 December 2021. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  31. ^ "Two Tory councillors defect amid North Shropshire by-election campaign". BBC News. 6 December 2021. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  32. ^ Davis, Gregory (7 December 2021). "Reclaim's first councillor is nothing to celebrate". Hope not Hate. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  33. ^ "VACANCY FOR A COUNCILLOR PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN" (PDF). Market Drayton Town Council. 31 August 2022.
  34. ^ Heren, Kit (12 June 2023). "Laurence Fox to run for MP in Boris Johnson's former constituency". LBC. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
  35. ^ "Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election 2023 results". Hillingdon Council. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
  36. ^ https://x.com/thereclaimparty/status/1799094005486981540 [bare URL]
  37. ^ Turner, Camilla (8 June 2024). "Conservative MPs defy party bosses to take cash from Laurence Fox's funder". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
  38. ^ "Reclaim's Mission". reclaimparty.co.uk. Reclaim Political Party. Archived from the original on 26 June 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024. We will field candidates at the next General Election – both to directly take seats and to actively target and unseat MPs who've sold Britain down the river.
  39. ^ https://x.com/thereclaimparty/status/1804536485799977431 [bare URL]
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