London: Britain’s anti-EU party UKIP expelled one of its candidates for the national election in May, saying she had brought the UK Independence Party into disrepute over an expenses scandal, the latest in a series of blows to the party’s reputation.
The party had suspended Janice Atkinson, a senior party member and an elected UKIP lawmaker in the European Parliament, on Friday as it scrambled to limit the damage to its image before a tightly contested May 7 election, when it hopes to play a role in deciding Britain’s next leader.
UKIP held a disciplinary hearing after the Sun newspaper on Friday released a secretly filmed video, which the newspaper said showed Atkinson’s chief of staff, Christine Hewitt, asking for a falsely inflated invoice for a restaurant meal that she intended to claim back from an EU parliamentary group.
“Janice Atkinson MEP and Christine Hewitt have been found to have brought the party into disrepute,” a UKIP statement released following Monday’s disciplinary hearing said. “As a result they have been expelled from UK Independence Party.” Atkinson was not immediately available for comment, but in a statement to the BBC, said she was “deeply disappointed” by the decision and would appeal.
“I was elected to represent the constituents of the southeast of England and I will continue to work tirelessly on their behalf and for the best interests of our country,” she said.
Both women have 14 days to appeal, the UKIP statement said.
Local police have said they are investigating a report of fraud.
Despite a string of racism and other scandals involving party members, UKIP’s rapid rise in popularity, due in part to its calls for tight controls on immigration, has siphoned votes away from Prime Minister David Cameron’s Conservative Party and may cost him an outright victory.
UKIP is aiming to win a handful of seats in parliament and, if, as expected, the election fails to produce a clear winner, it could wield influence over the next government, advancing its campaign to get Britain to leave the EU.
Speaking after the release of the Sun report on Friday, UKIP leader Nigel Farage said he was deeply shocked by the video, saying it “was one of the most incredibly stupid and dishonest things I’ve ever seen in my life.”
