Like me, you probably voted for Boris in the 2019 General election to ‘Get Brexit Done!’

I don’t regret doing so, we got our Brexit – though, not quite the hard WTO deal that was my preference – but to be honest, it was better than remaining in the EU.

The Conservative manifesto of 2019 was, in my opinion, acceptable if not dynamic. So all seemed fine. Other right of centre parties behaved pragmatically, well aware that, if they split the Brexiteer vote, the election could have resulted in a Labour/LibDems/SNP disastrous coalition that ignored the EU referendum and took us straight back to Brussels.

So the smaller right of centre parties stood aside. – let’s face it, with the exception of the Brexit Party, none of the 11 others stood a chance anyway – Boris was in Downing Street with a ‘stonking 80 seat majority.’

I campaigned for the Conservatives, as I have done for the previous 8 years. It was a very rewarding result and I felt very proud to have done my bit. But, I have been deceived and resigned from the party last week. I am not going back.

My reason is probably the same as many of you reading this. Whilst my main interest was getting Brexit done, I did not ignore the rest of the Conservative Party manifesto that I enthusiastically campaigned on. Illegal immigration was equally important and that was evident on the doorstep during my intense campaigning in the build-up to the 2019 election.

Also, the triple-lock on pensions policy resonated with voters in my constituency. People did not bring it up, but I did, once they became aware of it, they enthusiastically assured me they would be voting for my MP. I was also getting excellent responses when I was able to confirm there would be no tax or national insurance rises. These excellent talking points came directly from CCHQ.

I now feel betrayed because I have been proven to have lied. In fact, on almost every assurance I gave, to 100s of people on the doorstep and at the campaign stalls I attended, my party has done the opposite. Immigration up, triple-lock gone, increased taxes and NI up. But the most disappointing of all is Boris’ obsessing over the ‘Climate Emergency’ swindle. I can honestly say that, when out campaigning, not only did this subject not come up, but if I chose to mention it, it elicited the most disdainful expletives. It is a very unpopular concept. So, I cannot trust the Conservative Party anymore. I’m out, done and in my eyes, a fraud.

So, I decided to move on and find a new right of centre party to work for. There were none! What I discovered shocked me. My research uncovered just how divided the smaller parties on the right are. Several can only be described as obsessed to the point of fascist. Others are simply ego-trips for their high-profile founders. The rest have absolutely no grasp of strategy to even get close to returning a representative to parliament. In fact, I don’t think they even want to as long as the donations keep rolling in.

A few days ago, I saw a link to the British Democratic Alliance website. What I read makes alot of sense. For example, there is no way a new centre-right party will win a General Election under the prevailing FPP system. I’m not against FPP by the way. Any other system would just deliver hung parliaments controlled by extremists from both sides of the political spectrum and that would be horrendous for Britain. 

What did make my eyes pop was that British Democratic Alliance have actually blind-sided other parties. By targeting 50 seats with independent candidates that would control the balance of power in the House of Commons, there would be no need to incur the ridiculous costs of forming a political party. By campaigning for individual, independent candidates, all funds could be used to promote the popular policies at local level instead of supporting the party hierarchy and expensive national marketing campaigns. This appeals to me as I’m sure it will appeal to you. 

So, on the ground, at the doorstep, all volunteer activist around the UK will be campaigning on a single manifesto for independent candidates who are fully subscribed and funded by the people, for the people with a single objective. That objective is to uninstall a marginal, unknown Labour, Conservative or LibDem MP and replace them with a popular, credible and highly respected local candidate. From my campaign experience, this is absolutely achievable.

So, I’m in and haven’t been this enthusiastic for years. I believe this time, I can make a real difference.