AN open message to all politicians at every level in the Forest of Dean.

Credit must go to where credit is due with the recent defections to UKIP of Tories Douglas Carswell MP and Mark Reckless MP.

Not only do they have the courage of their convictions to make such a move, but are forthright and honest in their motives.

Slightly less high-profile, but nevertheless of equal relevance and importance, was the defection from Labour in April this year of Blair Smillie, the grandson of one of the founding fathers of the Labour Party Robert Smillie.

During his speech at the UKIP conference at Doncaster Blair (not the warmonger turned peace envoy Teflon Tony), Blair Smillie, alluded that his grandfather would be turning in his grave at the demise of the  Labour Party's traditional ethics and values and the attraction to champagne socialism.

Nine miles from Doncaster is the town of Rotherham where much has been reported of late on the child abuse tragedies that took place there.

On Friday and Saturday last at the conference emotive Yorkshire speak­er after speaker spoke about Labour's failings in sacrificing the innocence of children to the alter of multiculturalism.

Truly tearfully moving.

Politicians of the Forest, you have the opportunity to apply (nothing's guaranteed)  to join UKIP – the People's Army – with the explicit mandate of putting Britain and its people first. 

Listening to our Muslim Yorkshire MEP Amjad Bashir and his local control vision for our communities was far more revealing than observing the  continuing accelerating false promise slide down the greasy slippery pole of Compo, (forgetful) Foggy and the increasingly irrelevant Clegg.

– Cllr Alan Preest (UKIP), Gloucestershire County Council, Lydney.