Look what they've done to our song, Ma

Former Heckmondwike BNP councillor David Exley has quit the party, saying leader Nick Griffin is taking the party in the ‘wrong direction’.

Mr Exley, who was the first BNP councillor to be elected onto Kirklees in 2003, lost his seat in the 2008 elections but stood again as the party’s candidate in Cleckheaton in the Kirklees poll and for Batley and Spen in the general election earlier this year.

But the one time leader of the group in Kirklees said he was worried the BNP was not representing the views of the electorate. “We can’t go on as we are under the present leadership,” said Mr Exley. “Nick is taking the party in the wrong direction. The BNP is not representing the views of the people and I don’t want to be a part of that. At the moment, Nick is fighting lots of legal cases and it is costing the party hundreds of thousands of pounds. We should not be doing that. We should be concentrating on the issues affecting people.”

Mr Exley, who is chairman of Heckmondwike’s chamber of trade, said he thought Mr Griffin’s leadership had dwindled since he was elected into the European Parliament.

“We can’t have a man who is doing everything - party administration, political leader and a member of the European parliament,” he added. “He should have delegated the roles and resigned as party leader. We are 12 months down the line from him being elected and we are suffering the consequences.”

Mr Exley said he would never ruling out standing an independent or under the banner of a different party.

Spenborough Guardian 9 January 2011