"NEO NAZI" BAND LED ST GEORGE'S DAY PARADE - CLAIM

28-04-2008

Sandwell Council leader Bill Thomas has promised an urgent investigation into claims that the borough’s St George’s Day parade last week was led by an Ulster marching with “neo-Nazi” tendencies.

The political website www.westbromblog.blogspot.com has reported that the British Ulster Alliance Flute Band was invited to take part in last Sunday's event, between Stone Cross and Dartmouth Park, despite alleged links to the BNP and Combat 18.

Their report includes footage purporting to show the loyalist musicians leading a chorus of “No Surrender To The IRA”.

West Brom Blogger points out that a BUA leader was jailed in 1993 for gun-running, and that the organisation has been refused permission in the past by West Midlands Police to hold a memorial for the Birmingham pub bombings.

Cllr Thomas told us last night that he wasn’t aware of the band’s presence in Sandwell, but said he would be demanding answers from chief executive Alison Fraser when they meet today.

"Our main role is to police the event, and control the traffic," he said. 

"The organisation of the parade is really down to the Stone Cross St George's Day Association, but obviously I'm concerned about this and I want to get to the bottom of it."

Despite West Brom Blogger’s reports, we haven’t been able to verify whether the band was officially invited – or whether they just turned up unannounced.

Our attempts to contact Trevor and Geoff Collins who are leading lights in the Association which runs the parade have so far been unsuccessful.

Local broadcaster Carl Chinn who has helped promote the parade over the years, and who launched it last Sunday, said he couldn’t believe the band would have been knowingly booked by the organisers.

Chinn declared: “As far as I’m concerned, I would have no truck with the far right and I believe in a positive and inclusive notion of Englishness, and you can see that from the St George’s Day event I’m involved with in Birmingham.

"The organisers of the event are upright, honourable men who have no truck with politics or politicians - and I wouldn't have any truck with them if they did.

"I can understand people's concerns, because no one wants to far right to capitalise on events like this, but we all know that if they can't win at the ballot box, they will try to spread their poison in other ways."

No doubt more clarification will be forthcoming during the day, but in any event, it’s clear that the Sandwell St George’s Day march has become a focus for the far right.

Last year, BNP leader Nick Griffin put in an appearance and this year’s shenanigans have earned the event glowing reviews on the BNP website.

At The Stirrer’s suggestion – based on helpful comments made on our Forum – Cllr Thomas has promised to look again at how the parade is staged.

The suggestion is that becomes more like Birmingham's St Patrick's Day event, and less of a march - a change which would make it less easy to "hijack" and more family friendly.

Thomas explained: “Our problem is that we could walk away, and leave it, but then other people would just take it over. Or we can try and do something positive and that’s what we should do” he said.

"We need to make it into a carnival type parade."

Discuss this on The Stirrer Forum.