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Janice Atkinson

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Janice Atkinson
Janice Atkinson in 2015
Member of the European Parliament
for South East England
In office
1 July 2014 – 1 July 2019[1][2]
Preceded byMarta Andreasen
Personal details
Born (1962-08-31) 31 August 1962 (age 62)
London, England
Political partyIndependent (2015–present)
Other political
affiliations		National Council of European Resistance[3]
UK Independence Party
(2011–2015)[4]
Conservative Party
(circa 1980 (‘’claimed’’) – 2011)[5]
(active 2005–2011)[6]
Spouse(s)Steve Small (div.), Simon
Children2
Websitejaniceatkinson.co.uk
European Parliament biography

Janice Ann Atkinson (born 31 August 1962) is a former British politician who was a Member of the European Parliament for the South East England region. She formerly represented the UK Independence Party (UKIP) and later sat as an independent: she was elected in 2014, second on the list for the region behind Nigel Farage. In March 2015, she was expelled from UKIP for "bringing the party into disrepute" after her chief of staff was recorded trying to fraudulently inflate her expenses.[7][8]

Political career

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Atkinson is a former member of the Conservative Party and ran a marketing business for two decades prior to becoming an MEP. As Janice Small, she was a press officer for the Conservatives in the south-east during the 2005 general election and in the 2010 general election, she was the Conservative candidate for Batley and Spen, finishing second, 4,406 votes behind Labour incumbent Mike Wood.[9] She was also director of Conservative Action for Electoral Reform.[10]

Atkinson joined UKIP in 2011, citing David Cameron's failure to produce a referendum on European Union membership.[11] As Janice Atkinson-Small she wrote a column for the Daily Mail.[citation needed]

She was selected as the UKIP candidate for Folkestone and Hythe for the 2015 general election, before being expelled from the party and withdrawn as its candidate due to a 'serious financial irregularity'.[4]

On 16 June 2015, it was announced that Atkinson had joined the newly formed far-right group in the European Parliament, Europe of Nations and Freedom (ENF).[12]

Atkinson is an associate of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).[13]

Atkinson campaigned for Brexit.[citation needed] She also asked Home Secretary Sajid Javid to make it mandatory for the Union Jack to be displayed at ports and airports; Javid refused the request.[citation needed]

Atkinson did not stand in the 2019 European Parliament elections.[14]

Political views

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Atkinson's political publications include: Migrant Crime Wave: The EU Cover Up Revealed,[15] Beyond Brussels: Brexit and The New European Patriotism and What Women Want versus The gender, transgender and cultural wars of the West.

In the aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing in May 2017, Atkinson called for the reintroduction of the death penalty for those convicted of terrorist crimes.[16]

On 1 March 2018 Atkinson was one of three UK MEPs who voted against a motion to encourage national parliaments to ban "gay conversion therapies".[17]

In August 2018 Atkinson called on Home Secretary Sajid Javid to fly the Union Jack at ports and airports; the request was refused.[18]

Controversies

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During the 2014 campaign it emerged that despite Atkinson's claims – and status as a champion of state selective education – her alma mater, Blackheath Bluecoat School, is not and has never been a grammar school.[19]

It was also reported that, before she joined UKIP, Atkinson was dropped from the 2011 alternative vote campaign following a meeting with undecided Conservatives in which she mentioned "her support for elements of" the British National Party's platform.[20] A few days later Atkinson swore at anti-racism campaigners. The incident followed her call for 'abusive' anti-UKIP protestors to be arrested by the police. A photo capturing the moment was widely reported and went viral on social media.[21] Atkinson, who has described towns in Kent as 'no-go areas' as a result of Eastern European immigration, has defended her position, claiming she marched as part of the Anti-Nazi League in her youth.[22]

In August 2014 she issued an apology after being recorded by a BBC News crew referring to the Thai (or Thai-born) wife of a constituent, who were both UKIP supporters, as "a ting-tong from somewhere", a term used in Thailand for people with mental health problems.[23] The woman and her husband threatened to withdraw from UKIP membership but changed their mind following a personal apology from UKIP leader Nigel Farage.[24][25] Interviewed on camera later at their home, the woman and her husband said that Atkinson hadn't apologised to them and was quite belligerent. Whilst speaking of Atkinson, Farage said "99% of UKIP members aren't like that and don't hold those views".[24] Atkinson apologised[26] and explained in an interview shortly after that she never meant any malice and the unintended comment was taken out of context.[27][better source needed]

In December 2014 it was revealed that Atkinson, whose annual salary as an MEP was around £79,000 per year, owed more than £2,000 in unpaid child support.[28] Her ex-husband claimed this had "caused major hardship for her son and for her family".[28] Atkinson was singled out for criticism as she had previously attacked "feckless families" who have more children than they can afford.[29]

Expenses fraud and expulsion from UKIP

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On 19 March 2015 Atkinson was suspended from the party following "allegations of a serious financial nature".[4] The Sun published a secret recording in which Atkinson's chief of staff, Christine Hewitt, spoke to a staff member at a restaurant in Margate and asked them for a fraudulent invoice, inflating the bill to over three times the cost of the £950 meal.[30][31] On the recording Hewett was heard to say "we overcharge them slightly, because that’s the way we repatriate it".[30][31] The following day the police were reported to be investigating.[31]

On 23 March Atkinson was expelled from UKIP for "bringing the party into disrepute".[32] No legal action was taken against Atkinson,[33] but Hewitt pled guilty to fraud and was given a suspended sentence.[34][35] Atkinson was cleared of all allegations by the Kent Police and no further action was taken against her.[8][7]

Personal life

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Atkinson was previously married to Steve Small, with whom she had two sons. Small, who was granted custody of the children following their divorce, criticised Atkinson in 2014 for falling behind on her child support payments. She was taken to court twice by the Child Support Agency to force her to pay what she owed.[36]

Her current husband, Simon, is a banker. In March 2019, she revealed that she had been diagnosed with cancer of the tonsils.[citation needed]

References

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  1. ^ "Key dates ahead". European Parliament. 20 May 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  2. ^ "Key dates ahead". BBC News Online. British Broadcasting Corporation. 22 May 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  3. ^ "À propos". Conseil National de la Résistance Européenne (in French). 29 November 2017. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2018.
  4. ^ a b c Lizzie Dearden (19 March 2015). "Ukip MEP Janice Atkinson suspended and axed as election candidate over 'financial allegations'". The Independent. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
  5. ^ Janice Atkison MEP (1 July 2015), Janice Atkinson MEP (About Janice), retrieved 2 July 2015
  6. ^ Seymour, Ellee (8 July 2006), Let me introduce you to Janice Small, archived from the original on 15 September 2011, retrieved 2 July 2015
  7. ^ a b Leclere, Matt (2 February 2016). "Janice Atkinson expenses investigation: Ex-Ukip MEP cleared by Kent Police after allegations into false claims at Margate pub". Kentonline.co.uk. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  8. ^ a b "Janice Atkinson: MEP to face no action over receipt claim". BBC News. 2 February 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  9. ^ "Janice Small – Conservative". Winsfordguardian.co.uk. Archived from the original on 27 May 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2016.
  10. ^ "Conservatives and electoral reform". Opendemocracy.net. 8 June 2009. Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 21 July 2016.
  11. ^ "Tory Janice Small defects to UKIP in row over Europe". Spenboroughguardian.co.uk. 10 October 2011. Archived from the original on 11 August 2016. Retrieved 21 July 2016.
  12. ^ Mason, Rowena (16 June 2015). "Ex-Ukip Janice Atkinson joins Le Pen-led EU group". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  13. ^ "Climate deniers: Ukip in bed with corporate America". Politics.co.uk. 5 November 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2016.
  14. ^ Lemmer, Richard (27 May 2019). "European Election results: Nigel Farage's Brexit Party secures largest number of MEPs". The News (Portsmouth). Retrieved 8 September 2019.
  15. ^ McGrath, Brid (1998). A biographical dictionary of the membership of the Irish House of Commons 1640-1641 (thesis thesis). Trinity College (Dublin, Ireland). Department of History. hdl:2262/77206.
  16. ^ Tom Pyman (23 May 2017). "Kent politician demands return of the death penalty following Manchester terror attack". Kent News. Archived from the original on 6 June 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  17. ^ "Situation of fundamental rights in the EU in 2016". VoteWatch Europe.
  18. ^ "Sajid Javid refuses request to fly the Union Flag at all border posts as people leave and arrive in Britain". Janice Atkinson MEP. 9 August 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.[permanent dead link]
  19. ^ "Has Janice Atkinson Been Caught Out ?, Times diary, 15 May 2014, reprinted by Hope Not Hate". Archived from the original on 18 July 2014. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  20. ^ "Controversy just follows some people around …". Evening Standard. 15 May 2014. Back in 2011, before her defection to Ukip, she was one of the few Tories to back the Alternative Vote system in the referendum on electoral reform. At a meeting held at AV HQ with senior executives on the campaign, she was wheeled out to persuade fellow Tories who were as yet undecided. Cue sharp intakes of breath when she calmly explained that she was supporting AV in part because she knew that had she been able to pick up second preferences from BNP supporters by communicating to them her support for elements of their platform, she would have won her seat.
  21. ^ "Ukip candidate slams protesters she swore at as 'fat' and 'a witch'". Your Canterbury. 19 May 2014.
  22. ^ Francis, Paul (11 May 2014). "UKIP candidate Janice Atkinson defends claim Kent has no-go areas due to Eastern European gangs". Kent Online.
  23. ^ Nicholas Watt (18 August 2014). "Ukip MEP apologises for insulting Thai supporter". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  24. ^ a b "UKIP leader Farage sorry for MEP Janice Atkinson's 'offensive' term". BBC. 19 August 2014.
  25. ^ "UKIP MEP Janice Atkinson uses 'outrageous' term for Thai woman". BBC Online. 18 August 2014.
  26. ^ Kashmira Gander (18 August 2014). "Ukip MEP Janice Atkinson apologises after calling Thai constituent a 'ting tong'". The Independent. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  27. ^ "Why did Janice Atkinson call someone a "Ting Tong"? - News Thing Interview". YouTube. 24 May 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  28. ^ a b "MEP behind Ukip's welfare policy chased for child support – Channel 4 News". Channel 4. 19 December 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  29. ^ "Ukip MEP Janice Atkinson, who attacked 'feckless' welfare families, owes £2,000 in missed child support payments". The Independent. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
  30. ^ a b "BBC News – Nigel Farage: UKIP Janice Atkinson allegations 'couldn't look worse'". BBC News. 20 March 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  31. ^ a b c Gallagher, Paul (20 March 2015). "Ukip's suspended members: Janice Atkinson joins long list as police investigate her expenses – Crime – UK – The Independent". The Independent. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  32. ^ "UKIP's Janice Atkinson expelled from party". BBC News. 23 March 2015. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  33. ^ "Janice Atkinson: MEP to face no action over receipt claim". BBC News. BBC. 2 February 2016. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
  34. ^ Hooper, Paul (7 September 2016). "Former Ukip MEP Janice Atkinson's aide Christine Hewitt, from Maidstone, sentenced for inflating meal receipt in Margate". Kent Online. Retrieved 17 November 2016.
  35. ^ "UKIP activist Christine Hewitt admits restaurant expense fraud - BBC News". BBC News. 8 September 2016. Retrieved 17 November 2016.
  36. ^ Rawlinson, Kevin (18 December 2014). "MEP behind Ukip's welfare policy chased for child support". 4 News. Retrieved 8 September 2019.
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