BNP challenges call to ban members from nursing

22 April, 2009

Supporters of the BNP have rejected fresh calls last week for members of the organisation to be banned from joining the nursing register – in the same way that police officers are already.

A motion, which was passed by delegates at the UNISON Health Care Service Group conference in Harrogate on Monday, argued that there is no place for members of the BNP in nursing.

However, Nursing Times has received a large number of responses from nurses and former nurses to the motion, claiming it was at odds with free speech.

Jean Purdy, BNP candidate for the North West Region, said: ‘I am a retired nursing sister with over 40 years experience in the NHS and was appalled at the motion passed by UNISON to ban members of the BNP from the nursing profession.

‘I have nursed MPs and councillors of all political parties, many of whose beliefs I would not support,’ she said.

‘There is much that is wrong with the NHS at the moment and nurses, whatever their political views, would be far better concerning themselves with the problems of hospitals whose death rates far exceed the norm,’ she added.

Another email received by Nursing Times said: ‘As a former nurse in East London I read with sadness of the decision to ban the BNP. I am not a member of any political party – I believe in freedom of expression in a democracy.

‘Is open political dialogue dead if you are in the nursing professions?’ the email said.

What do you think? Have your say in the Nursing Times forums

Readers' comments (24)

npeters | 22-Apr-2009 1:27 pm
Thank you for this article. My mother worked as nurse in England, and continued in Canada after emigrating. As with any other profession, you check your politics at the door.

I find it frightening and sinister that a far-left union can try to ban people from their profession because of their political associations.

The British National Party is not in any way, shape or form 'racist' and this terrible smear is indicative of the , extremist, far-left, totalitarian ideology behind Unison and its Labour connections.

The British National Party is a legal, registered, political party. It does not tolerate racism or hate in any form, and seeks to protect the history, culture, human rights, and future of the indigenous people of the British Isles.

What Unison proposes is flagrantly anti-democratic, totalitarian, an attack on freedom of association, and contrary to every value that defines British culture.
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Mr Al | 22-Apr-2009 2:26 pm
npeters, good to know that BNP media officers have nothing better to do that trawl through Nursing Times stories.

'The BNP is not in any way, shape or form racist'

Are you completely sure about that?
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Fiona Knipe | 22-Apr-2009 3:54 pm
Mr Al, 'BMP media officers have nothing better to do than trawl through Nursing Times stories'.

You are probably unaware that all political parties do the same for all media, it's called political nounce.

However you do alude that the BNP is 'racist' - Have you ever been to a BNP meeting? You don't have to be a member, but what you will find is a group of people who are reverently British.

Why not try for the next one in your area, you should be able to find it through http://bnp.org.uk , though you may already have been indoctrinated that everything BNP is 'BAD', but that would not be held against you.

The reason for all of the retoric against the BNP is the forthcoming euro elections, all of the major parties are terrified of the BNP gaining seats, as admitted by Harriet Harman on 10 Apr 09 - "(the BNP) are a bigger threat than they have been before."

And after Labours' pathetic budget today...
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Mr Al | 22-Apr-2009 5:05 pm
‘Nounce’, Ms Knipe?

Putting aside the irony of a BNP supporter demonstrating such a poor grasp of the English language, what you call ‘indoctrination’ is normally referred to as opinion, in this case based on freely-available facts.

The BNP are the easiest targets in British politics because society has simply moved on from the Neanderthal opinions it espouses. And while I don’t like to kick people when they're down, I’ll make an exception here.

There is a documentary featuring your former youth leader Mark Collett openly praising Adolf Hitler (Young, Nazi and Proud, Channel 4, 2002).

And BNP leader Nick Griffin has said, on record, that accepted opinion on the holocaust is ‘a mixture of Allied wartime propaganda, extremely profitable lies, and latter witch-hysteria’ (http://is.gd/tTOI).

History is one thing; that the BNP attempts to apply this same ignorance to modern politics tells its own story.

Clearly we are both preaching to the converted here, but the people who agree with me far, far outnumber the people who agree with you.

The BNP’s ideology has no place in the Britain I know and love. Please continue your desperate PR operation and we’ll all continue to laugh at you.
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Fiona Knipe | 22-Apr-2009 5:53 pm
Mr Al

As you have decended to name calling, best this page be closed, how sad you are...
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anon | 22-Apr-2009 6:09 pm
Sorry to have caused offence. I didn't mean it as a personal insult. I genuinely feel that 'Neanderthal' is an accurate adjective for BNP ideology.
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Anonymous | 22-Apr-2009 6:42 pm
Looks like Fiona won the moral high ground on that one mr al.
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sjeffery@fmail.co.uk | 22-Apr-2009 8:15 pm
There is little doubt that the BNP are a racist party and I would question how any member of a profession that builds its foundations on caring and compassion can allow openly racist nurses to practice.

Police and prison officers are not allowed to be BNP members, nursing should follow suit.
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Anonymous | 22-Apr-2009 8:30 pm
Stuart
As a BNP member I respect your right to your opinion, something that this present government doesn't understand.
However, a party is not racist, only some (and I emphasise SOME) of its members are.
May I ask a question? If you are a Labour voter, do you agree with everything in todays' budget? Because I don't agree with everything SOME people in the BNP say, but the only way I can change it is from the inside, not by a bland "...there is little doubt that the BNP are a racist party..."
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Rachael Barbour | 22-Apr-2009 8:44 pm
Halleluiah!!!! Sanity has returned to the nursing times comments section - I was the only one on the last article to speak against the BNP and the other comments who supported it! How ironic that Nick Griffin is practically a holocaust denier - and the first comment on the previous article compared kicking out BNP nurses to jewish nurses getting removed in 1930's Germany! Freedom of speech is great for making the BNP look stupid. THANK YOU MR AL YOU HAVE MADE MY DAY!!!!
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Jayne Timms | 22-Apr-2009 11:19 pm
I am appalled by the naked bigotry exhibited by your correspondent Rachael Barbour. I can't seriously believe that someone as narrow minded and ignorant as she can be employed in either nursing or healthcare. I sincerely hope, for all our sakes, she is not - for I would most certainly NOT want to be under her care!

But just for one moment let's just examine what this bastion of intolerance is seeking.

It amounts to this.

She wants anyone who is a member of the BNP to be sacked from the profession and prevented from earning a living in nursing or health care! It doesn't matter to this bigot that those she is so keen to persecute haven't actually done anything wrong or acted unprofessionally in any way. Rachel clearly has not heard of natural justice, fair play or common decency, anymore than she can comprehend that a person is regarded as innocent until proven guilty.

So who’s next on your hate list Rachael. Rich people? Poor people. Catholics? Jews?

I'm not sure where Rachael's spiritual home is - Nazi Germany or the Soviet Union perhaps? However I must add that I don't really care - except to say wherever it may be the sooner she departs for it the better it will be for the profession.
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laura lamb | 23-Apr-2009 1:10 am
I think it's interesting that Fiona Knipe declined to comment on Mr Al's last post when it contained irrefutable evidence of the racist ideology of the BNP. It's widely known that they are racist and I for one find their more extreme views risible in their ignorance at best and at worst sinister.

However, I do not think that nurses should be removed from the register for their political views, we live in a democracy and much as the views of BNP party supporters and members disgust me, I respect their right to free political speech and expression.

All of that being said, I've been nursing for around 15 years now and if in my practice I came across another health professional with these political views I would be watching them very closely. I find it rather strange that a member of the nursing profession would be so intolerant of difference and diversity. Worrying indeed.
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Catherine Ahrens | 23-Apr-2009 9:06 am
I am just for a moment savouring the irony of BNP members accusing others of bigotry.

This is a party that advocates unemployed immigrants should be forcibly deported from Britain! The BNP are the real bigots who seek to persecute people who have done no wrong.

They have a policy in favour of the reintroduction of corporal punishment.

They have a policy of an end to immigration totally - that should be of particular concern to all of us working in the NHS, which has been kept from the brink of collapse by the hard work of thousands of overseas staff.

This is not just about a few "bad apples" inside the BNP. It is the policy and workings of the whol party. BNP policies are incompatible with genuine compassionate nursing for everyone within our community.
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Anonymous | 23-Apr-2009 9:38 am
The BNP must be rubbing their hands with glee with all of the free publicity these forums give them :)
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Anonymous | 23-Apr-2009 11:49 am
Please be fair, if you are going to ban BNP members from the nursing profession, then you should ban nurses from being the member of ANY political party especially the Labour Party, who are destroying the NHS and forcing us towards a privatised NHS.
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Anthea Philip | 23-Apr-2009 1:53 pm
It is my opinion that politics should not be discussed at work or even socially unless it is with someone you know really well. Consequently in my nursing career of 30 odd years or so, the subject has not come up. Perhaps this is due to the fact that I prefer to spend my time caring for my patients rather than chatting with my colleagues about subjects that are best left unsaid.
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Andrew Walton | 23-Apr-2009 3:25 pm
I am in favour of freedom of speech. However, the BNP are not. They would seek to silence trade unions and political parties on the left. This has happened in Germany, Italy and Spain whenever fascists have got into power. Although the BNP seeks to represent itself as a more reasonable party, it would still forcibly expel all immigrants - leaving the NHS in crisis. Its leadership are still Nazis.

The European Court of Human Rights upheld the right of trade unions to kick out members of the BNP - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/6402533.stm

In the above report, the spokesman defending the BNP betrays the bigotry and racism inherent in their stance - "We are a nationalist party and the trade union leaders are antithesis to this - they are internationalists."

Nurses should be banned from being members of the BNP as it is completely incompatible with the principles of the NHS - that everyone should be entitled to care, regardless of race.
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Fiona Knipe | 23-Apr-2009 11:18 pm
Andrew

Are not at least one union seeking to silence the BNP.
Sauce for the goose, sauce for the gander...
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Phil Bryant | 24-Apr-2009 7:10 pm
Black Labour MP Dianne Abbott has apologised for making comments about "blonde, blue eyed" nurses and questioned whether they should be allowed to treat black patients.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/diane-abbott-is-sorry-for-the-record-miss-finland-is-also-black-1354725.html

She has apologised for her comments, which have quite rightly be construed as 'racist'.

Should all Labour members be banned from the nursing profession on the grounds that one (or some) of it's members have made comments in the past that can be construed as 'racist'? This Labour government have recently legalized discrimination against white, male job applicants (Google it), is this not racist and sexist?

Whilst we're on the subject of racism, is the Black Police Association racist? After all, they only allow black officers to join their ranks.

Can someone define 'racism' for me, because I vote BNP and see nothing racist about their policies.
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Anon | 25-Apr-2009 9:32 am
Interesting to see various people chucking allegations around about the BNP. I wonder what they think of the islamic organisation the MDDA. Their aims,clearly stated on their website, include advancing the cause of islamic ideas in medicine (FGM?) and the promotion of health and well-being of the muslim community. Nothing regarding the health and well-being of the infidels.
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