www.vote-jonathan.co.uk

UKIP member Gerald Price in Manchester has stood as a UKIP candidate in 2 general elections and 5 local elections. As he has been completely blind for the last 50 years, UKIP provide funding to help him deliver his leaflets. Jonathan knows this is true because he designed Gerald's posters last year, and arranged printing and delivery for him.

This year, the UK Independence Party selected disabled member Jack Biggs as a local election candidate in Dorset. Knowing that he was disabled, like with Gerald Price UKIP offered help and funding for his campaign.

But when Mr. Biggs found out that UKIP was standing in a seat where his daughter is currently a councillor, he asked UKIP not to stand against her - and sent an email threatening to tell the press that ‘UKIP do not want disabled candidates'.

Mr. Biggs said "I am a good friend but a very bad enemy. You have 24 hours to reconsider before I see one of my friend reporters on the Echo with the disability story.

Jonathan described Mr. Biggs' actions as ‘insulting' to the millions of people with disabilities in the UK and said,

"Many of my friends and relatives have disabilities, but none of them would ever use their disability as a weapon for blackmail. My congratulations go to the Guardian newspaper - the only national paper that has so far dared to publish this blackmail in full, and make the truth known."

See here to judge for yourself - read the full text of the emails.

But the national press condemned UKIP before bothering to read the emails, claiming ‘discrimination' without first checking the facts. Gerald Price said "It is nonsense to say that UKIP discriminate against disabled people. They have given me all the support and help I have ever needed and when I stood at the last council elections I took 13.9% of the vote, top in our group in the area".