After Newark: UKIP watch

The results of the Newark by-election are in: a comfortable win for the Conservatives, with UKIP coming in second. This is an important outcome, with Nigel Farage hoping that his party would secure their first seat in parliament on the back of their success in the European elections. However, with this result, many Tories are gladly proclaiming the UKIP bubble has burst, with the momentum of the party grinding to a halt. They claim that they have stopped the so-called ‘people’s army’, though it is worth noting the town was flooded with Conservatives during the campaign, eager to ensure this pivotal outcome.

So, what now for UKIP? All this effort has proven the threat of UKIP is a powerful thing, and they will be all-out to make even more gains at the general election next year. Whether their previous success can be transferred is a different matter though. Both Labour and Lib Dem voters used their say to vote Conservative in a conscious effort to keep UKIP from victory, but Cameron’s seemingly shallow promise of a referendum if he wins the next election played into their hands, fuelling both the anti-immigration ideas of some voters and the feelings of being ignored that some others hold.

I personally hold right-wing viewpoints and feel a Conservative majority would be the best thing for our country – the success of the coalition is evidence of this and, without the shackles of the Liberal Democrats, I feel more advances could be made. However, this is unlikely if the UKIP situation is not dealt with. UKIP is not a minutia to be filed away for later – even with the controversies over their policies and candidates, it is undeniable that Farage has a charisma that attracts voters fed up of the political norm; a bunch of public schoolboys with no real world experience.

Farage wants to reclaim power from the EU, and to have foreign criminals deported. He wants to make sentences mean what they say, and he wants to end the barrage of political correctness that blights the country. These objectives may be based on misinformation, are not completely unworkable in practice, but they reflect the views of a public that increasingly feels ignored by the government, regulated by foreign bureaucrats and lost in their own country.

They represent a breath of fresh air, and many people feel about ready for one. I don’t think UKIP have the power to make significant gains at a general election, but they certainly have the power to ruin things for the Conservatives. This result has given them a complacency they simply can’t afford.

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