Damian Hockney resigns as Veritas Deputy Leader

The following paragraph appeared at the end of a Guardian report on the RKS resignation covered in the posting below this:

Damian Hockney, a Veritias member of the London assembly and another defector from Ukip, has also resigned as deputy leader of Veritas, but said he would be remaining on the assembly.

Robert Kilroy-Silk Resigns as Veritas Leader

Reports in the Daily Telegraph may be read from this link and the BBC from here.

The following Press Release was issued by Veritas this afternoon:

Press Release

Friday the 29th July 2005 1600 hrs

From Veritas

Subject Resignation of Robert Kilroy Silk

Further to the press release issued by Robert Kilroy Silk today at 1400 hrs.

Veritas regrets Robert's decision but will respect his wishes and reluctantly accept his resignation as Veritas Party Leader effective immediately.

The party and its members wish him well in the future and thank him for all his efforts on our behalf.

There will be a leadership election in the coming weeks as previously promised, the result being announced at the Veritas A G M on September the 18th.

Patrick Eston

Party Chairman

Talk Veritas Updates

The crisis within Veritas appeared to deepen this evening as the Veritas Forum Moderator posted the following on the Public Pages of his website:

It was quite a day for the Veritas National Campaign Director and Chief of Staff, David Soutter, yesterday.

Last night saw his name quietly removed from the list of personnel on the Veritas Party website. For the past 5 months, he has been proudly listed there as the Veritas Chief of Staff.

Yesterday the Veritas leadership agreed to the removal of his name from the website, though it is believed that he remains in place as the Veritas National Campaign Director.

His close friend Ashley Merry remains in place as the Veritas Media Relations Officer - see Party website, 'Personnel' page.

There are moves behind the scenes to remove David Soutter from all Veritas positions, but there are also strong indications that these are being stoutly resisted by our David. I have no doubt that the Party of 'no lies, no evasions, no spin and no deceit' will very soon tell us more about just what is going on.

[SNIPPED]

I'm mindful of the 'Talk Veritas' Forum rules on personal abuse, so will refrain from giving further details of Abi Salik's visit, but a fuller account of his colourful encounter with our David can be obtained by sending me a 'pm'.

REMINDER: The 28 days set by Chester County Court on 27 June for our David to settle his £19,000 debt to the Legal Services Commission (formerly the Legal Aid Board) expires on Monday. If that amount is not paid by then, the Legal Services Commission intend to apply for an order for possession and compulsory sale of our David's 'Tranquil House', Milwr, so that they can recover their debt and costs

The link to this report may be reached by clicking here.

Open letter to Robert Kilroy-Silk MEP

The following open letter has been posted on the 'Talk Veritas' public pages, for details on the background of its author, the full posting may be read by clicking here.

Quote

OPEN LETTER FROM BRYAN SMALLEY TO ROBERT KILROY-SILK ABOUT THE FUTURE OF VERITAS

“Where are we going?”

20th July 2005

Dear Robert,

I am writing to express my concern about certain happenings which appear to be taking place in Veritas. I have just heard of the suspension of the membership of Ken Wharton apparently without any proper disciplinary procedure or a hearing to allow him to present his side of the story. I have also just discovered that we have a new chairman a Mr Patrick Eston whom I had never heard of before.

I think it only fair to let you know that I am being encouraged to stand as leader in the forthcoming election.

I left UKIP to join Veritas mainly because it was run by a cabal which I regarded as dishonest and which kept control by relying heavily on its disciplinary procedures which were almost without exception implemented illegally.

I regarded you as having charisma and an ability to communicate our message to the media. This should have been a good starting point. Unfortunately I have found you lacking in every respect of any qualities of leadership. A leader needs to take his team with him. He has to earn and maintain their respect. This is particularly so in a voluntary organisation because members are free to leave if they are unhappy with their leader.

Leadership is not achieved by bullying nor by acting dictatorially. First, a leader needs to be able to communicate with his team. Second, he needs to have clear objectives, and third, he needs to look after individuals within the team even though they may have views contrary to his own.

Having joined Veritas I found all these qualities lacking. I have never received any newsletter or similar communication telling me what is happening. During the election I pleaded for information such as a list of members within my constituency. I never received a response. From what I hear, you appear to have put your faith in a confidence trickster who also issues orders in an autocratic style. To date none of your management team have been elected.

I have a further concern. No organisation can function sufficiently without funds. If the new chairman is to issue a monthly newsletter how is it to be funded? Has any costing been undertaken? Bearing in mind the problems which we seem to have experienced finding the deposits for candidates, such things as a monthly newsletter appear to be nothing more than a pipe dream. I presume that the chairman thinks that putting information on a web site constitutes a newsletter. It doesn’t! What about members who are unable to access the web site?

It seems to me that there is no one in the Party who has sufficient experience or ability to keep Veritas running. Its formation was a wonderful idea. A party telling the truth run by honest people.

Unless there is massive change, the Party will inevitably die. It will certainly not survive as a one-man band. Please tell me, and all the other members, what you are going to do to put it right.

I think this should really be an open letter. It would be useful as a tool to determine whether I am just an odd-ball or whether a majority of other members share my concerns.

Sincerely,

Bryan Smalley
Much Hadham,
Hertfordshire

Unquote

Venemous Veritas!

Tony Bennett, Research Assistant to Veritas Party Leader, Robert Kilroy-Silk MEP, has revealed on the public pages of the Veritas Talk forum, more startling revelations of the wrangles that are tearing apart the fledgling and now clearly failing political party.

The detailed posting concerning one of the most active and generous of the party's founding members may be read from this link.

UKIP/Veritas Split - Disaster in Derby

David Black leader of the two man Derby UKIP Party went down to a crashing defeat when he contested the local council election in Abbey ward Derby city on the 14th July . Returning a vote of 88 he remarked to the local press that this was his last attempt to get back into local politics. Labour went on to win back the council house for themselves and now have a majority of one in the council chamber with 26 seats . The lib/dem – tory alliance 24 seats and Frank Leeming , Veritas ( who had previously kept the alliance in power for some 13 months ) .

Cheadle by-election result

The figures below are taken from the Daily Telegraph report, which may be read in full from this link.

Allowing for the lower turnout it appears the Veritas candidate managed to attract only some 30 per cent of the combined votes achieved by UKIP and the BNP in the recent general election, an estimate that assumes they gained no votes from the main parties. The latter seems a sensible assumption given the recent reports which one assumes must have served to sully the prospects of the party.

What hope for Veritas if this is all they can achieve when the field is left clear by the other minor parties?

M Hunter (LibDem) - 19,593

Stephen Day (Con) - 15,936

Martin Miller (Lab) - 1,739

Leslie Leggett (Veritas) - 218

John Allman (Alliance for Change) - 81

Majority: 3,657

Turnout: 55.2 per cent

Swing: Con to LibDem: 0.63pc

General Election: P Calton (LibDem) 23,189; S Day (Con) 19,169; M Miller (Lab) 4,169;

Cavanagh (UKIP) 489; Chadfield (BNP) 421

Maj 4,020 Turnout 69.6 per cent

Leadership challenge makes Radio Four News

The challenge to Robert Kilroy-Silk was featured on this evening's six o'clock news on Radio Four, the brief item repeated the Erewash General Election fourth place achieved by RKS and the challenger's assertion that subsequently the Veritas leader had been mainly on holiday.