UKIP look to build on local election results.

Oldham’s UKIP branch are celebrating following the local elections, having only relaunched as a party locally in January.

In last year’s local elections the party fielded no candidates having folded in 2017.

But regrouping under the direction of Oldham Party Chairman Paul Goldring, UKIP were able to field 14 candidates across the 20 wards this year.

Mr Goldring says the party is happy with the election results - and looking to grow for next year.

“We are feeling elated. We had candidates come second and third, I was 237 votes shy of Labour and we are already working for next year,” he said. 

“We now have a year to prepare rather than a month and we will have 20 candidates next year.

“The only reason we didn’t this time was because we couldn’t get all the paperwork in on time - we were a victim of our own success really.”

Mr Goldring, joined the party in 2015 when he was living in Telford. Born in Portsmouth, he has served in the military and worked as a technical supervisor for 
various companies. 

He has lived in Oldham for the past three years with his partner and was asked by the Greater Manchester UKIP Chairman to resurrect the Oldham branch.

He said: “I originally joined the party because of Nigel Farage. I thought he was a good speaker and said it as it was, he didn’t sugar-coat anything. It wasn’t to do with race or immigration for me, it was about sovereignty. 

“I got fired up because I didn’t spend 14 years in the military to see a British Prime Minister go begging to a French President and a German Chancellor. It made my blood boil and I had to do something.

“My father’s generation didn’t fight and die to let a foreign power, no matter how friendly, tell us how to live our lives. 

“To say the EU is the most undemocratic organisation on this planet is an understatement and that is what got me fired up. My focus is sovereignty. 

“Once we have control of our own destiny then we can sit down, rationally, and discuss all these other issues.”

Mr Goldring said: “A major hurdle for us is perception. We want to educate people on what the party stands for. 

“A lot of people think we are a one trick pony, but we have a 30-point manifesto, only one of which is leaving the EU. 

“Nobody stood in Oldham in 2017 because a lot of people thought that having won the referendum, their job was done and when Farage left, it endorsed that thought, but we aren’t done, we have 29 other points on our manifesto. We have learned lessons and we will do better next time.”

On enduring perceptions of the party holding racist and Islamophobic views, Mr Goldring, said: “It is very hurtful. People have said things to me when we are simply standing there with our literature and I know it is overused, but it is fake news. We are not a racist party. 

“We are not against immigration, we are against uncontrolled immigration, we believe it needs to be managed better. 

“We are here for the good, we are here for the people. My great-grandson is being born next month and it really makes you take stock. The political machinery in this country is broken.”

Mr Goldring added: “If UKIP win seats, we would use whatever power we have to influence the Labour majority and we won’t be silent about it. They will know we are there.”

Local Branch Secretary is Paul Taylor, former Station Commander of Oldham Fire Station for 30 years. 

“UKIP Oldham cares about Oldham and we want Oldham to be a better place. We see our goal as trying to maintain a person’s quality of life. 

“We want the quality of life of every section of our society to be the same. We want even-handed provision for all services and a quality of life that we can all enjoy.

“I know the problems that exist within Oldham because I have seen them first hand. 

“Two Oldham Labour MPs have voted against coming out of Europe at every opportunity even though 61 per cent of Oldham voted leave.

“UKIP are the people. We come from the people, we represent the people, we are the people.  

“I want absolute equality and absolute fairness and absolute transparency regardless of race, colour, creed, religion, I don’t care, all I want is equality and provision of services and equality in our existence together.”