UKIP NEC MINUTES SUNDAY 29TH July, 2018 1-30pm start. Union Jack Club.

Members present: (Party Leader) (GB); Tony McIntyre (Party Chairman) (TM); Sebastian Fairweather (Treasurer) (SF), Andrew Moncreiff (AM), Mick McGough (MMc), Paula Walters (PWl), Elizabeth Jones (EJ), (PB); Michelle Brown (MB); Katie Fanning (KF) Fiona Mills (FM), by video, Piers Wauchope (PW); Julia Reid (JR); Paul Oakley (General Secretary) (PJO), Alan Brown (AB), (MB), Marietta King (MK), Ben Walker (BW), Nathan Ridings (NR), Richard Ford (RF), Adam Richardson (AR), Roger Arthur (RA) (Minutes Secretary).

1. Introduction. TM welcomed all to the meeting and introduced new attendees.

2. Apologies: (MH), (MP) and Donald MacKay (DM),

3. Minutes of the previous meeting 17th June 2018 were approved. MM & AB. 6 for. None against. 6 abstained.

4. Matters arising. Those entitled to attend NEC meetings must sign the UKIP confidentiality agreement. Company Directors should provide certified copies of their passport, driving licence, plus a utility bill.

TM said that those entitled to vote at meetings include the 12 elected NEC members, plus the Leader, the MEP representative and in the case of a hung vote the Chairman has a casting vote.

TM proposed that we make a move to video conferencing probably every alternate month, to reduce travelling and cost burdens. SF outlined measures needed to facilitate conference calls. Members agreed with TM’s proposal.

On a possible move to Monday meetings, GB said that that might clash with MEP attendance of Strasbourg meetings. MM suggested that we need to get forward dates for the year, in diaries and TM agreed.

GB proposed a vote of thanks (VOT) to all ex NEC members. KF seconded the proposal, which was carried unanimously.

TM also proposed a VOT to all Lexdrum House staff, who had continued to perform their work under difficult circumstances. EJ seconded the motion, which was carried unanimously.

5. Leaders Report GB advised that he managed to get a 4.5 minute speaking slot in Strasbourg, allowing him to address a number of high profile issues in the EU Assembly.

He was interviewed by Russian TV on 6th July, where he highlighted serious concerns over the Chequers proposals. He also appeared on Sky News and was interviewed by Radio Belfast.

GB raised concerns about the EU’s insidious attempts to control and restrict freedom of Media. The introduction of copyright directives, requiring payment plus the need for advance approvals, pose a real threat to freedom of expression.

GB reported that our MEP’s continue to receive thousands of emails encouraging them to keep pushing for a clean , while those of other parties seem happy that illegal immigration should be made legal!

UKIP membership is rising notably and, in just one example, Belfast has got 50 new members.

Kris Hicks, who worked for Neil Hamilton, is taking over from Gawain Towler (on a 12 month contract) as UKIP Press Officer.

GB emphasised that we will need around 40,000 members to fund the Party’s ongoing expenditure, including salaries for more staff. GB confirmed again that he does need a full time PA.

GB recalled that the proposal to return 10% of new member joining fees to branches had not been agreed. AM confirmed that, saying that branches should already have been advised of that. Branches are expected to raise their own income.

6. Treasurer’s Report An SE Region Patriot’s club had been proposed, with a membership fee of £100; surplus funds going to UKIP central. Care is needed, as that might require separate reporting obligations. Members were happy with this, on the understanding that the region would carry out the necessary organisation, that it meets statutory requirements and that it doesn’t impose any additional legal burden on UKIP.

SF circulated his Treasurer’s Report, emphasising that MEP accounts must be kept separate from local Branch Accounts.

SF said that the Lewisham East by-election cost £10k, which was surprisingly low and that a by election could cost up to £50k.

A lifetime Patrons membership had been offered for £5k each, but that had only been taken up by few people.

Many patrons have returned to the Party recently and seem happy to continue paying £1,000 pa, or £84 per month. We should continue to encourage other ex Patrons who may not yet have returned.

It was reported that Patrons had agreed to pay a bonus to staff at Lexdrum House. DF will put forward a proposal for possible ongoing bonus payments.

The possibility of employing a company named “First Office” is being considered to service UKIP stationery needs, which cost around £11k per month. 7. Chairman’s Report TM reiterated his view that we must try to put up candidates in every constituency. AR said that the lack of a UKIP candidate would likely dissuade people from supporting UKIP in future.

Asked if UKIP would do deals with other parties, where they are putting up a Brexit candidate, TM said that we will not do deals and their only option would be for the other parties not put up a candidate against UKIP.

The need for a staff appraisal process was agreed. SF will develop some proposals for consideration.

7.1 Conference The International Conference Centre (ICC) has a 1,500 seat capacity. Around £16.5k has been received so far, in advance payment for tickets. Security will be upgraded at a cost of £1,083.

TM said that the entrance security arrangements, with wristbands issued at the door, should apply and proposed that there should be an NEC stall at Conference. MK suggested that a manning rota should be drawn up for the stall. PW and EJ will be arranging the music for the conference.

Invitations to branches, to submit motions for conference, had not elicited much response so far. Proposed motions should be sent to TM.

GB is considering who might speak at conference and would welcome suggestions.

DF suggested that NEC members should have name badges, so that members can identify them easily. The idea was agreed in principle.

Branches should identify Founder Members and anyone who should receive medals at conference, by end August. TM to coordinate.

Options under consideration for future conferences are: • Tynemouth 09/10 March 2019 Spring Conference, costing around £590 per day for room hire only. • Cardiff/Newport September 2019, to be considered.

The capacity for each conference would probably be 1,000. Member comments were requested. PW suggested that a SE venue might be more appropriate for one of those conferences.

7.2 Website The possibility of making automatic links between the UKIP national website, to other UKIP sites, such as Kipper Central and UKIP daily, was discussed. It was agreed that no such links should made, with 6 voting for, 3 against & 1 abstention. It was agreed that YI should have a link.

7.3 Conference Call Facility See minute 4 above.

7.4 Appointment of Party Director The appointment of Paul Williams as Party Director, was unanimously agreed. His services, 1 day per week, will be free. TM thanked members for their support.

8. Party Secretary’s Report AB gave an update about an ongoing legal action.

9. General Secretary’s Report PJO reported on complaints against members.

GB having notified the NEC that confidential information was being leaked by a member present, PJO declined to update members on disciplinary matters.

10. Membership Survey There has been an amazing response to the membership survey with a broad range of responses. The team headed up by Paul Walters and Fiona Mills have worked tirelessly, they were thanked for all that they had done by the Chairman.

TM proposed that the top 10 recurring suggestions should be taken forward and that a printed copy of the first 50 suggestions should be made available at Conference. The policy spokespeople should be sent the complete list of suggestions.

The top suggestions included: Brexit delivery, Freedom of Speech, Electoral Reform, plus increased spending on Defence and the Police. NR offered to help PW to collate data in spreadsheet format.

Some members thought the process of inviting and evaluating suggestions was too complicated. MK observed that many suggestions looked similar to GB’s proposals.

GB asked for confirmation that his Mini Manifesto (draft 2 of 27th July) is approved by the NEC, so that it can be available for Conference. The approval to be done by email when the document is complete.

TM proposed that a small booklet, similar to the “chain link” booklet should be produced, once the mini-manifesto has been published. Suggestions to be sent to TM.

11. Wales Leadership Election The Count is expected to take place on 10th August.

12. Policy See draft of Mini Manifesto

13. Twitter and Facebook Issues Not discussed.

14. The Role of YI Not discussed.

15 Any Other Business

The meeting finished at 5-30pm.

Next meeting: Sunday 9th September, 1-30pm at the Union Jack Club, Sandell St, SE1 8UJ