BNP pins election hopes on Glasgow

THE BNP is to launch a major campaign across Glasgow as it attempts to target Scottish voters who have become disillusioned with mainstream politics.

The extreme right-wing group claims that it expects to win a seat at Holyrood in the 2011 Scottish election and will field candidates in every seat in the forthcoming general election.

In an interview with Scotland on Sunday, BNP leader Nick Griffin said Glasgow would be his party's "springboard" for attracting support across Scotland.

Griffin said: "We've got hundreds of inquiries from Scotland, and that will translate into votes. What is sure is that we will have our highest vote ever in Scotland and will have enough Scottish organisers in place to be in a position to fight every seat in the country at the next general election. Glasgow will be the springboard, and if our maths are right it's perfectly feasible for us to be serious challengers for a Scottish parliamentary seat in the next elections."

At the 2007 Holyrood election, the BNP won 24,600 votes in the regional list across Scotland, and 3,865 on the Glasgow list alone.

An SNP spokesman said: "It is vital for the people of Scotland to come out and register their vote, so that the BNP does not sneak in through the back door if there is a low turnout."

Yesterday, in a joint statement, the Archbishops of Canterbury and York urged voters not to let the MPs' expenses scandal lead to protest votes for the BNP at next month's European and local elections.

It said: "The BNP try to obscure the fact that their politics is based on fear and aggression. There is no place for their views."