BBC right on BNP’s inclusion on Question Time

For the past week I have watched in disbelief at the outrage politicians and parts of the general public have show at the BBC’s decision to invite Nick Griffin onto Question Time.

As much as the majority of rational minded people might hate it, the British National Party are now a legitimate part of British democracy after winning two European Parliament seats and clocking up a million votes.

What comes with this place in British democracy is space on the political agenda such as party political broadcasts, televised interviews and sporadic appearances on Question Time as a minor party.

By silencing them because we disagree with their abhorrent views undermines our democracy. The question for our democracy over the past week shouldn’t have been

‘Should the BNP be allowed on Question Time?,’ but,

‘How have we got to a state of affairs that means the BNP are on Question Time?’

The fear factor
Mainstream politicians are scared of the answer to this question – this is why Peter Hain was so against their involvement and Jack Straw couldn’t answer directly if it was Labour’s immigration policy that had led to increased support of the BNP.

Mainstream society is afraid of approaching the question of why people would support this implicitly racist party and afraid that if the BNP are heard, more people will turn to their way of thinking.

But based on the performance of Nick Griffin on Question Time, I have faith in the power of the argument that their policies are politically and ethically wrong. The way to beat them is not by cutting off their oxygen of publicity, but giving them the oxygen that they are entitled to until they eventually beat themselves.

Exposed
A story in the Observer today was headlined, ‘BNP supporters attack Griffin over poor Question Time performance.’ In it Lee Barnes, the BNP’s legal officer is quoted as criticising Griffin’s performance. The story said:

“He (Lee Barnes) accused his party’s leader of “failing to press the attack” on the “ethnic middle class” for “taking up the best jobs while still playing the bogus race card for every opportunity.””

This demonstrates the core problem for Nick Griffin – he is trying to describe far right policies in moderate terms. Any sort of analysis will undo this in a way that is not satisfactory to the far right or to people attracted away from mainstream politics by Griffin’s more moderate rhetoric.

He simply can not maintain that Britain should go back to a 99% white population at the same time as saying second and third generation immigrants can stay in the country if they contribute to society.

Underneath the slogans and soundbites is a world of contradiction, and once exposed through means such as Question Time the BNP’s stay in mainstream politics will be short. We should believe in the power of our democracy and the values that underpin this country regardless of the difficulties they currently face.