UKIP now stand before two paths - and we must choose wisely

The drawbridge for a progressive Ukip is being lifted - so run for a leap

It has become clear to me that there is a silent battle taking ground in Ukip, between those who look to the past and those who look to the future. It’s now that the Party must decide its destiny – and I must say; only one option will provide Ukip a longstanding future. Party membership may have risen steadily over the years, but as days pass we lose excellent contributions because they believe that the party is not going the right way – and it rightly isn’t, with a group of boring old-Tories possessing greater influence in Ukip.

The fact is, no one joined Ukip to comply with the establishment; actually the complete opposite. Many of us are proud anti-establishment folk, seeing our leaders as relatively unaccountable, ineffective and inward looking spineless men who believe they can tamper with the country’s traditions and culture however they wish. The main reason I, like many, are in Ukip is because of the “I will not support the LibLabCon - I will not obey” mentality, which is a fair enough mentality. Like when an establishment politician explains that we should not support Ukip because they are a ‘smaller party’ and consequently has no future in British politics, it’s like a slave, who wants nothing more but freedom, to be told that he or she will never get hold of that freedom. Thankfully, we are getting strong determinism to see change; and many of the determined are currently being accommodated by Ukip, but the Party leadership must ensure that they are stuffing the pillows sufficiently.

Many activists are not finding comfort on the pillow, like I’ve heard from many in Young Independence. This is ultimately because the Party is currently taking the ‘love it or hate it’ approach, and as much as this may secure ground among boring Tories and some Old Labour, it’s not enough to secure the electoral success we hope for in the 2015 General Election. The 'bunker reality' is that only a Ukip talking about development, expansion, curry and the Commonwealth can really pierce into unknown territory. Moreover, it would prove significant to steal the far-left’s mantra  that the EU robs workers of their rights and centralises businesses with the multi-national cooperations, with their full-hearted dedication to this project going way back – because it does. And the fact is many joined the Ukip of the small man, the small business, the pub and so on. There are some overly nationalistic forces in the party which project mixed messages to the wider population, and could even come out as some dodgy Isolationism.

But we should be the party of the Global Britain – that’s where the money is. Goodbye to the shackles of EU laws and regulation and hello to a Britain freely trading with the world and establishing special ties with the Commonwealth, perhaps even establishing closer economic and military relationships in the long run. What the people of Britain really want to hear is that the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the party of the world and everyone is invited*. The three main parties have ruined the party and British want a fresh alternative to be the DJ – a DJ that will probably play Rule Britannia and the James Bond theme tune quite often.

If Ukip manifest itself as the true progressive party of British politics, like the SDP-Liberal Alliance did in the 80s, anything is possible. But the difference is This is a party which has grown from the people and have a natural instinct to provide what the people want – and that’s a Britain men and women of all backgrounds can call home. So fix up Ukip. In 10 years we don’t want Ukip to be added to the list of grassroots political movements that eventually slipped over their own oil. In one sense, we are a party of proud opportunists, because we were blessed with an opportunity we should never neglect: to make a change for the future, not the past.

*very strict terms and conditions apply