Gerard Batten | |
|---|---|
 | |
| UKIP Spokesperson on Brexit | |
| Assumed office 29 November 2016 | |
| Leader | Paul Nuttall |
| Preceded by | position established |
| Member of the European Parliament for London | |
| Assumed office 10 June 2004 | |
| Preceded by | Nicholas Bethell, 4th Baron Bethell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 27 March 1954 London, United Kingdom |
| Political party | UK Independence Party (1993-present) |
| Residence(s) | Forest Gate, London (private) |
| Website | Official website europarl...GERARD BATTEN |
Gerard Joseph Batten[1] (born 27 March 1954 in London) is a politician and Member of the European Parliament for London for the UK Independence Party (UKIP). He was first elected in 2004.
He was a founding member of UKIP in September 1993, and was the first Party Secretary from 1994 to 1997. He has fought local elections, a by-election, a European election, and two general elections as a UKIP candidate. As well as his seat in the European Parliament, he is a member of UKIP's National Executive Committee.[citation needed]
Batten was appointed a member of the European Parliament's Subcommittee on Security and Defence in July 2004, and shortly afterwards was also appointed UKIP's official spokesman on Security and Defence. In this role, he attacked the then Labour government's plans to introduce identity cards.[2] He has been a vocal opponent of the European Arrest Warrant.[3]
He was a salesman for British Telecom for 28 years before becoming an MEP. At the 2007 UKIP annual conference, he was selected as the party's candidate to contest the 2008 London mayoral election,[4] where he received 1.2% of the votes. He stood in the 2009 UKIP leadership election,[5] coming second.
In 2017, in response to the Irish Government's intervention in the Brexit negotiations, Batten expressed the view that Ireland is "a tiny country that relies on UK for its existence" and advocated the revocation of the Common Travel Area between Ireland and the British Islands.[6]
Prodi controversy
In April 2006, Batten stated that a London constituent and former FSB agent, Lieutenant-Colonel Alexander Litvinenko, had been told that Romano Prodi, Italian Prime Minister and former President of the European Commission, had been the KGB's "man in Italy"; Batten demanded an inquiry into the allegations.[citation needed]
He told the European Parliament that Litvinenko had been warned by FSB deputy chief General Anatoly Trofimov that there were numerous KGB agents among Italian politicians, and that "Romano Prodi is our man in Italy". According to the Brussels-based EU Reporter on 3 April 2006, "another high-level source, a former KGB operative in London, has confirmed the story".[7]
Among the most serious claims, by Batten's account, is that Prodi assisted in the protection of KGB operatives allegedly involved in the assassination attempt on Pope John Paul II in 1981. The Mitrokhin Commission, an Italian parliamentary commission, later concluded that the KGB and GRU (Soviet military intelligence) did attempt to assassinate Pope John Paul II.[citation needed]
On 26 April 2006, Batten repeated his call for a parliamentary inquiry, stating that: "Former, senior members of the KGB are willing to testify in such an investigation, under the right conditions... It is not acceptable that this situation is unresolved, given the importance of Russia's relations with the European Union." Lt.-Col. Litvinenko was admitted to hospital with suspected poisoning on 11 November 2006 after eating at a London restaurant, and died on 23 November 2006. The police later concluded he had been poisoned with polonium, a small dose of which is lethal. Anatoly Trofimov was assassinated by unknown gunmen in April 2005.[citation needed]
On 22 January 2007, the BBC and ITV News released documents and video footage from February 2006 in which Litvinenko made the same allegations against Prodi.[8][9]
References
- ^ "Notice of result" (PDF). Kingston Council. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 June 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2010.
((cite web)): Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ UKIP opposition to identity cards Archived 26 August 2004 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ http://conservativewoman.co.uk/gerard-batten-mep-mafia-judges-par-old-bailey-cameron-wrong-european-arrest-warrant/
- ^ "Interview: Mayoral candidate wants London free of the EU". Retrieved 21 February 2008.
- ^ "UKIP leadership: Runners and riders", BBC News, 19 November 2009
- ^ York, Chris (27 November 2017). "Ukip MEP Sparks Outrage Over 'Imperialist' Brexit Comment On Irish Border". Huffington Post UK. Archived from the original on 27 November 2017. Retrieved 27 November 2017.
((cite news)): Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help) - ^ Donnelly, Cillian (3 April 2006). "Prodi Accused Of Being Former Soviet Agent". EU Reporter. Archived from the original on 24 May 2006. Retrieved 21 November 2006.
- ^ "'Multiple attempts' on Litvinenko". BBC. 22 January 2007. Retrieved 1 March 2007.
- ^ "Litvinenko footage emerges". ITV News. 22 January 2007. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 2007-03-01.
((cite web)): Unknown parameter|deadurl=ignored (|url-status=suggested) (help)
External links
- Official website
- Profile on European Parliament website
- Islamic fundamentalism is incompatible with freedom and Western liberal democracy, by Gerard Batten, Freedom Today, November/December 2006
- Video Interview with Gerard Batten MEP Video Interview made on 16 February 2010