The ThunderDragon

The sentencing of former Watford Conservative PPC Ian Oakley, which was due to have been passed today, has been postponed for four weeks.

Ian pleaded guilty to carrying out acts of harassment and criminal damage towards Watford Lib Dems back in August, with the sentencing set for today, after a psychiatric assessment had been carried out. The reason for the postponement today being that this report had not been completed in time.

Personally, I don’t think that is it obvious that Ian is psychologically disturbed, as he never seemed like it to me - but I’m not a psychiatrist.

But what I do know for sure is that he will get the appropriate sentence for his misdeeds on October 13.

This has been a hard post for me to write, especially since I was on holiday when this fact emerged.

Ian Oakley, former Conservative PPC for Watford, is guilty of harassment and criminal damage towards Watford Lib Dems. I didn’t think that he was, but he is. I stand corrected.

What he has done is completely unacceptable. And he deserves what he gets for it. Unlike Asp, a contributor to this blog, who wrote a post on this subject whilst I was on holiday, I am certainly not “left with the classic comment “So what?”.” What he has done is so very very wrong. It would be wrong is he wasn’t a politician and these actions had been done for any other reason, and is abhorrent because it was done for political reasons. He has effectively attempted to subvert democracy.

He has already lost any chance of a political career, and faces a jail term. And also appears to be facing questions over his psychological state.

I fully support the idea of a full inquiry into this. Nothing less can be done. But the very idea that by-elections should be held for three local councillor positions won by Watford Conservatives since 2006 is ridiculous. It is not worth the cost of the by-elections, considering the massive Lib Dem majority on the council it certainly is not affecting their ability to make decisions. Really, the hate campaign failed since the Lib Dems certainly weren’t adversley affected by it.

Ian is not someone I thought would - or could - have done these disgusting things. Unfortunately we are all wrong sometimes, and I was this time. Ian will get his just desserts.

Possibly the most interesting story to emerge out of Watford since - well, ever - and The ThunderDragon isn’t around to give us his opinion on matters. Might be the most interesting thing to come out of Watford actually, but I’m just a biased Northerner and assume that all goings on in places where they can’t talk proper are wrong in some way. Still, doesn’t stop me talking about it.

“It” of course being Ian Oakley - and his admission of a campaign of harassment against the Lib Dems. I’d have thought they’d be quite proud that they were viewed as a target instead of being the eternal third place - but that’s probably a sore point.

I missed this story breaking, but knew there would be mention of it on these humble pages:

Personally, I do not believe that Ian has done this. I don’t think that he is so stupid as to conduct such a campaign. However, if he is convicted of this in a court of law, then I will stand corrected. (Ian Oakley Resigns as Watford PPC - 20th July)

Well, he’s not been convicted exactly…

I’ve noticed though that a lot of commenters are jumping on this post though. I’m not going to try and pre-empt what the invariable comment will be from the Dragon on his return from the desolate wastelands that is Scotland, but perhaps it’s a case a misplaced loyalty.

Let’s look at it objectively though.

Is Ian Oakley the first parliamentary candidate to resort to shady dealings? Certainly not, and I doubt he’ll be the last. It happens with any job - some people want it so much they do things they shouldn’t have.

So, does it mean that all Conservatives are vandals? I don’t think anyone can even think about suggesting as such - it’s an isolated incident. I’ll say with some confidence that it’s not official Tory policy - or indeed that of any political party. Well, maybe the BNP….

And so what that people who knew Oakley better than you, me, or the cat next door didn’t believe he could have done it. More intelligent people than I have been duped by criminals in the past. It’s seemingly very easy to keep criminal activity hidden - it’s often difficult enough for the police and courts to know if someone’s committed an offence with all the evidence in front of them.

Therefore, I’m left with the classic comment “So what?”. It’s not like Oakley was actually an MP and with the responsibility attached to it. He’s done the crime, so he’ll serve the time (whatever it might be). Unfortunately for the Tories, he’s almost certainly cost them any chance in Watford next time out. Give it a few years, there’ll be some scandal affecting some other party. And providing it’s not a systematic approach by an entire party, I’ll still be saying “so what?” The people then will also serve the time as appropriate. We don’t live in a world where everyone is morally sound. If we did, I wouldn’t have much of a job.

~Asp (With no allegiance to any particular party before anyone comments)

Ian was arrested in connection with a hate campaign conducted against Watford Lib Dem councillors, and has now resigned as Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Watford. No charges have yet been brought against Ian, just accusations. As such, Ian has resigned to enable the local party to move on, not because he is guilty.

Personally, I do not believe that Ian has done this. I don’t think that he is so stupid as to conduct such a campaign. However, if he is convicted of this in a court of law, then I will stand corrected. And if he is cleared, then I shall expect acknowledgement of his innocence from all accusers.

This sort hate campaign is unacceptable, and whoever has been carrying it out - Ian or anyone else - should be brought to justice. Politics must be conducted through reasoned debate, not by the use of intimidation.

I certainly do not believe that “Tory hope for Watford fades“. Watford is still winnable for us, we just need to ensure that we select the right candidate and work even harder than before. And I will most certainly be playing my part.

PS. I thought long and hard before writing this post, but since some ‘hilarious’ commenters [who I presume are Lib Dems] started making comments like this:

Will you be visiting Ian in jail? You Tories are hilarious, it’s true

and this:

That would be the fantastic, hilarious and arrestable ex-Conservative PPC Ian Oakley…

on my blog, and I thought I’d make my position clear. I will also be closely monitoring comments on this post.

Please note: This entire blog, and this post in specific, are written purely on a personal basis.

I am currently trapped in my office, since a “suspect package” has been handed in to the police station opposite - and the entire road outside has been blocked off.

The bomb squad is apparently on their way, and we have been warned to stay away from the windows.

Ooh, the excitement!

The Watford Observer article on what is going on is here.

UPDATE: All over now. Bit of an anti-climax, really.

Still, it made our day several notches more interesting!

Today is election day. The day that many of us have worked very hard for over the last few months, myself included. Personally, I have been fighting my very first election as a candidate [see above for a photo of my ballot paper] - to become a councillor in the ward in which I live - hence the lack of posts on this blog recently. You can see the two leaflets which I have been delivering in my ward here and here, along with many others across Watford and Three Rivers.

This morning I was up by 5.30am and went on a “dawn raid” in Watford, posting leaflets through doors reminding people that today was election day and that the Conservative candidate in their ward was the one to vote for. Then, after work, I went out knocking on doors and reminding people that they could still vote until 10pm. Some gave positive responses, some just said they “don’t vote”. But few gave particularly negative responses, which was nice.

The polls have closed across the country, and results are expected to start flooding in soon. Hopefully we will make good progress both across the country and specifically in Watford and Three Rivers.

Watch David Cameron casting his vote below:

Today I have been leafleting in Watford - my first time! I was leafleting to help the fantastic [and hilarious] Conservative PPC Ian Oakley take the seat away from the failing and useless Claire Ward.

It was great fun campaigning with other people, mostly Conservative Future members including a candidate for CF chairman, and will hopefully go some way towards getting more Conservative votes in Watford - and with less than two thousand votes between all three parties at the last parliamentary election [no matter what the Fib Dems claim], every vote counts!

One thing that that needs to be done is for the Watford Conservative website to get back online.

In a rare occurrence, the Lib Dems have apologised for their lying to the Watford electorate. Unfortunately they have only apologised for mis-attributing the words of the Lib Dem Mayor to the Watford Observer, rather than for the actual lie itself.

Of course it’s not the view of the newspaper, because it’s simply not true. Despite what the Lib Dems, and especially their seemingly habitual liar of a PPC, claim Watford is a three-way marginal seat - less than two thousand votes separate the three main parties - as I blogged about before, when this particular lie was made in a leaflet that dropped through my letter-box.

So now, Sal Brinton, I challenge you to come clean and admit the rest of your lying. Admit that you have wilfully misled the people of Watford with your leaflets. Admit that Watford is a close and rare three-way marginal. It is not true that “[o]nly the Lib Dems can beat Labour here” in the slightest. Whilst I don’t - and cannot - argue that the Lib Dems’ Sal Brinton have a good chance of wining Watford’s parliamentary election, so does Claire Ward and Ian Oakley [who you can help win by going here].

There is no excuse for your lying, so own up to it.

via Chris Paul and Tom Watson

Want an opportunity to campaign in one of the tightest marginals in the country? Then go here and take up the opportunity to participate in a rare three-way marginal, where less than two thousand votes decide which party wins the seat - where either a Labour, Conservative or Lib Dem could be sent back to Westminster [despite the Lib Dems lies to the contrary].

If Cameron is to win, or even significantly reduce Brown’s majority, he needs to win Watford. And as such Ian Oakley, Watford PPC, needs support.

After all, by this time next week, an election could well have been called!

This is the area in which I have lived all my life [bar university]. It has a Lib Dem council and mayor [Three Rivers, a separate council but forms part of the parliamentary constituency, also has a LD council] and a Labour MP. And all of them are bloody useless.

The Lib Dem councils do bugger-all except send out leaflets, which in themselves are full of lies and deceptions. In the most recent one, which I reported here, they claimed that it is a “two-horse race in Watford”, a claim which I showed to be utterly false. Watford is one of the tightest marginals in Britain, and a classic three-horse race, with less than 2,000 votes separating all three parties in the 2005 general election.

As such a tight marginal, Ian Oakley, the Conservative PPC, needs to pull his finger out. My area of Watford has never had any Conservative leaflets dropped through the letterbox. He doesn’t appear to be turning up in the local newspapers. The Lib Dems do the leafleting, and that - and that only - is the reason why they hold the council. They’re useless at doing everything else.

He needs to leaflet the entire constituency pointing out Lib Dem candidate Sal Brinton’s lies in her leaflet and letters sent out and Claire Ward’s utter uselessness as MP for Watford. Labour and the Liberal Democrats, through their uselessness, lies, and general incompetence, have caused people to lose faith and interest in politics. The Conservatives can get it back. Watford is a constituency that is eminently winnable - but considering the level of apathy, not without a good deal of work.

Source: The Times