Henry Bolton (British politician)

Bolton has said that the effectiveness of policies is more important than whether they are from the left or the right.[10] As a Liberal Democrat he said that being tough on issues of law and order was part of the party's principles.[11] At the launch of his campaign to be UKIP leader, Bolton highlighted his opposition to the practice of female genital mutilation.[12]

During his leadership campaign he spoke of Britain's separation from the EU, saying that UKIP has "a moral responsibility to make sure Brexit is a success for everybody".[13]

In July 2017, Bolton declared that he was standing in UKIP's forthcoming leadership election.[14] He began as a relative unknown in a field of eleven candidates; however, his standing improved as other candidates withdrew, and he received the endorsements of four of the party's MEPs: James Carver, Jill Seymour, Mike Hookem and Ray Finch.[15] The former UKIP leader Nigel Farage had acted as his political referee to stand for the leadership.[16]

During the campaign Bolton challenged the decision to allow Anne Marie Waters to stand.[17] He said that her candidacy was in violation of the party's rules of procedure as she was not considered to be 'in good standing' due to previous exclusions for elections.[18] He withdrew the challenge when faced with the possibility that it could lead to counter-suits against the party.[19] Subsequently, he was quoted by the press as saying that UKIP was in danger of becoming the "UK Nazi party" if the wrong candidate were elected as leader.[20] Following his victory he stated that "Brexit is our core task" while separately declaring Islam a "concern",[21] though he believed that an anti-Islam agenda would offer UKIP little gain.[22] In recognition of his new role, in October 2017 he was placed at Number 86 in 'The Top 100 Most Influential People on the Right' by commentator Iain Dale.[23]

In January 2018, it became known that Bolton had left his wife and embarked on a relationship with Jo Marney, a model and party member nearly 30 years his junior. As a consequence Bolton faced demands from members of UKIP that he stand down as leader.[24][25] On 14 January it was reported that Marney had been suspended from UKIP following allegations that she had sent a series of SMS messages containing racist comments about Prince Harry's fiancée, Meghan Markle.[26] Her comments also targeted immigrants and Grenfell Tower families.[27] The following day, Bolton announced he had ended his relationship with Marney,[28] but media subsequently reported that the two continued to be seen in each other's company.[29] Responding to these reports, Bolton suggested that the controversy would "fade away".[30]

On 19 January 2018, MEP Jonathan Arnott announced his resignation from UKIP.[31] In his resignation letter, he stated that he had lost confidence in Bolton, who he felt was "not the right person for the job" – but thought no better of those "jockeying" for position in the party.[31] On 21 January, the UKIP National Executive Committee (NEC) delivered a vote of no confidence in Bolton; only Bolton voted against the motion.[32] Bolton had made it clear earlier that day that he would not resign if the vote went against him, because he felt another leadership election would destroy the party. Consequently, at the emergency meeting of UKIP's NEC, it was decided that party members would be balloted on whether Bolton should be removed from office, as the NEC does not itself have the power to dismiss the leader.[32] On 22 January, Margot Parker resigned as deputy leader, claiming Bolton had left the party in "limbo". Immigration spokesman John Bickley, Trade and Industry spokesman William Dartmouth and other spokesmen resigned on the same day.[33] At an extraordinary general meeting held in Birmingham on 17 February, 63% backed a motion of no confidence in Bolton, and he was removed as UKIP leader, a decision that triggered UKIP's fourth leadership election in eighteen months.[34] Acting UKIP leader Gerard Batten subsequently suggested that Bolton had left the party.[35]

On 22 February 2018, Bolton and Marney appeared as guests on an edition of the ITV daytime magazine programme This Morning where Bolton argued that Marney's Grenfell Tower comments had been taken out of context and that it was important to have a debate about illegal immigration.[36]

On 6 March 2018, Bolton announced his intention to establish a new political party, OneNation, that would "campaign unceasingly for our full independence from the EU" and that would "mirror some of the changes that I sought to bring to UKIP".[37] The registration application for OneNation was rejected by the Electoral Commission as "likely to mislead voters",[38] its name being the same as an existing Islamic relief charity.[39] Our Nation was registered with the Electoral Commission on 31 October 2018.[40] Bolton was listed as leader, with Ben Glayzer as nominating officer and Hodgson Birkby as treasurer. The registered address was a suite in the Grand Hotel, Folkestone,[40] where Bolton was a permanent resident. Party membership was £27.50 a year, or £750 for "John Bull membership" which included drinks with the leader and a twice-yearly John Bull Newsletter.[41][lower-alpha 1] The party was de-registered on 4 November 2019.[43]

Bolton contested the 2019 general election in Folkestone and Hythe as an independent, after the Brexit Party decided not to contest the seat.[44] He received 576 votes (1%).[45]