Andrew Brons

Andrew Henry William Brons (born 3 June 1947, London) is a British politician. Long active in far right politics in Britain, he was elected as a Member of the European Parliament for Yorkshire and the Humber for the British National Party at the 2009 European Parliament election. He was previously the leader of the National Front during the 1980s.

Family background and early activity

Brons is of German and British ancestry. His great-grandfather emigrated to London's East End from Germany in the 1890s.^[2]

Andrew Brons began his political career at seventeen, when in 1964 he joined the National Socialist Movement,^[3] a Neo-Nazi organisation founded on Adolf Hitler's birthday by Colin Jordan. NSM members were responsible for an arson campaign against Jewish property and synagogues in the 1960s.^[1] According to anti-fascist group Searchlight, Brons approved of this. He wrote a letter to Jordan's wife, in which he reported meeting an NSM member who "mentioned such activities as bombing synagogues". In response to this he stated: "On this subject I have a dual view, in that I realise that he is well intentioned, I feel that our public image may suffer considerable damage as a result of these activities. I am however open to correction on this point."^[4] According to Hope Not Hate,^[5] he also sent Mrs Jordan money to buy Nazi material including a swastika badge, explaining how he was about to begin a publicity programme for the NSM in Yorkshire by flooding areas with Nazi propaganda in the form of posters, stickers and slogans. Questioned about his membership of the NSM in 2009, Brons claimed "People do silly things when they are 17. Peter Mandelson was once a member of the Young Communist League but we don't continue to call him a communist."^[6]

In 1965 Brons joined John Bean's British National Party (not the same as the current incarnation), which later merged with the League of Empire Loyalists to form the National Front (NF) in 1967.^[7] Brons was voted onto the National Front's national directorate in 1974, and "as the NF's education officer, he hosted seminars on racial nationalism and tried to give its racism a more 'scientific' basis."^[8]

Brons started work as a lecturer at Harrogate College in 1970, continuing to work there until 2005, lecturing in A Level Law and Government and Politics.^[9]

Brons contested Harrogate for the National Front in both 1974 general elections, polling 1,186 votes (2.3%) in February and 1,030 (2.3%) in October. As NF candidate in the Birmingham Stechford by-election of 31 March 1977^[10] he polled 2955 votes (8.2%), forcing the Liberal candidate into fourth place, and helping his stature to grow within the NF.

National Front leadership

Following the poor showing by the National Front in the 1979 general election, and John Tyndall's subsequent departure, Brons became chair of the NF in 1979^[8] and in doing so broke with his former mentor. Brons, though, led the NF in name only. Initially Martin Webster, who became National Activities Organiser, exerted the most influence before the Political Soldier wing of the party became more important. Brons tended to support the Flag Group although he lost influence to Ian Anderson and faded from his leading position. Nevertheless, Brons had links to the Political Soldier wing and is credited with having introduced the concept of distributism into the party, which formed a central part of the new ideology of the NF.^[11] Brons co-edited the NF journal New Nation, with Richard Verrall, the author of a work of holocaust denial, Did Six Million Really Die?^[8]

Brons edited the National Front's June 1983 general election manifesto, which "called for a global apartheid to prevent the 'extinction' of whites everywhere."^[12] The manifesto declared that "The National Front rejects the whole concept of multiracialism. We recognise inherent racial differences in Man. The races of Man are profoundly unequal in their characteristics, potential and abilities."^[12]

On at least two occasions in the early 1980s Brons' far-right activities caused difficulties for his employer: in 1982, a protest led by the Anti-Nazi League gathered outside Brons' classroom in central Harrogate and was met by National Front supporters running a counter-demonstration. The National Front supporters taunted the Anti-Nazi League demonstrators and stabbed two students. In total, 6 people were arrested as a result of the clash.^[13]

Subsequently in October 1983, Brons called upon the Principal of Harrogate College as a character witness,^[9] when Brons was convicted by magistrates of using insulting words and behaviour likely to cause a breach of the peace and fined £50.^[14] The incident in question involved Brons leading a march through Leeds city centre with a group of NF supporters who were handing out leaflets and chanting slogans including "white power" and "death to Jews".^[15] When a police officer of Malaysian origin asked the group to disperse, Brons is alleged to have replied: "I am aware of my legal rights. Inferior beings like you probably do not appreciate the principle of free speech."^[16] An allegation which Brons has always denied.^[17] His appeal to Leeds Crown Court was unsuccessful.^[15]

Although Brons continued as a leading member and even wrote a number of articles for the Political Soldier-supporting Nationalism Today, he was generally opposed to the positions of the Official National Front and resigned from the leadership in 1984.^[18] He resigned from the party altogether in 1986, along with Martin Webster and others but, unlike Webster, became involved in the Flag Group.^[19] It was Brons who, in 1986, approached Tyndall with a view to a reconciliation between the Flag Group and the modern British National Party but the proposed deal came to nothing after it was repudiated by Martin Wingfield in The Flag newspaper.^[20]

Retirement from teaching and subsequent British National Party career

After leaving the National Front in 1986, Brons dedicated himself to his lecturing position at Harrogate College, which he continued in until his retirement in 2005.^[15] Upon retirement Brons joined the BNP in 2005/2006.^[21][6] He subsequently wrote at least two articles for the BNP's official magazine Identity.^[22]

Brons had a "tentative agreement" to return to work at Harrogate College in September 2009;^[9] he had however been selected as BNP candidate for the European Elections 2009 in the Yorkshire and the Humber constituency,^[21] and upon becoming the BNP's first ever MEP (a distinction he holds jointly with BNP chairman Nick Griffin) he declined the offer.

Elections contested

National

European Parliament

See also

Wikinews has related news: United Kingdom elects first British National Party members of European Parliament

• British National Party
• British National Party (1960)
• British National Front
• National Socialist Movement

References

External links

• Official website

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