News article filed by BNP Chairman    http://www.bnp.org.uk/images/newsarchive12/chairman.jpg  Nick Griffin asks for a new wave of donations to keep the Party going     The measured and steady progress made by the BNP in the General Election is exactly what was anticipated when the party leadership met shortly after the 2004 European Elections and worked out the next steps of our long-term strategy.     It was agreed that the 2005 General Election  in which we knew from the start we could not possibly win any seats - must be used as a stepping stone to the local council elections of May 2006; a contest in which we have the realistic opportunity to win seats all over the country.     75% share of the vote    The long-term value of this grass roots upwards strategy was shown in the elections just taken place. In places with BNP councillors, such as Barking and Halifax, for example, our General Election votes from those BNP wards were perhaps as high as 35% of all votes cast. And in the Stoke Mayoral election, while the BNPs Steve Batkin won 19% of the total vote (nearly 16,000 votes, within a few hundred votes of second place) over the whole city, a shocked Labour activist let slip that Steve took 75% of the votes in Longton North ward, where he and his BNP colleague Mark Leate have done such good jobs as councillors.     So, having won back nearly seven times more deposits than ever before, had our highest ever vote share and our highest ever parliamentary election vote (Richard Barnbrooks 16.9% in Barking), and having decisively crushed Veritas and UKIP, the way is clear for us to work towards winning record numbers of seats next May. And we used this election to buy £55,000-worth of digital printing and ancillary equipment, all of it absolutely ideal for the production of the regular ward newsletters we need to maximise our local council impact.     Huge opportunity     Add to these pluses the fact that the Tory party is about to suffer a divisive leadership battle, and that the Labour government is going to be hit by a serious economic downturn, and it is clear that the next 12 months will be a time of great opportunity for the British National Party.     The corresponding danger, however, comes from the fact that our opponents  particularly those close to increasingly totalitarian New Labour  will also be all too well aware of our potential, and will step up the pressure to try to kill us off before its too late.     We must therefore expect a further wave of anti-democratic repression and denial of our rights, vexatious court cases and media smears. And, just at present, it is not giving away any secrets to say that we are unusually vulnerable just now. Like every other political party in the country, our coffers have been totally emptied by the General Election. All our essential running costs are covered, but we have no reserves.     Unpaid bills     We have a stack of bills from suppliers who helped us with credit during the election. We have members who have laid out thousands of pounds in legal costs in the fight against political persecution. The money from our record number of saved deposits is needed to cover the cost of those that we forfeited. If we are hit with some fresh legal or financial challenge before these bills are paid we would face a serious temporary shortfall.     And we have ambitions: We need as a matter of urgency to hold a whole series of regional seminars on the campaigning techniques that must be rolled out now to help us win that record number of seats next year. We have already identified a number of local council by-elections coming up where we will need to spend right up to the election expenses limit in order to be in with a chance of winning. We are on the verge of moving into the music business in a big way  something with enormous cultural, political and financial potential, but which will involve major investment to get started really properly.     New source of donations    Where is all that money to come from? Not from the activist hardcore. Not from the people who have turned down overtime or taken unpaid holidays to campaign in the General Election. Not from the usual generous donors who gave until it hurts to finance our most successful General Election campaign ever. Not from them because, for many, the Widows Mites they have already given are literally all they had to give.     So the danger is that too many cyberspace nationalists will think that logging on to this site is enough. Well, its not! Too many new readers will think that they can leave the struggle and expense of turning the BNP from pressure group to power winning machine to somebody else. Well, they cant! Too many people who will think that money given next month is as good as money given today. Well, its not!     Supporters living in other countries may think that their own nationalist groups might be able to make a difference. Well, in some places thats true, and if so please help them instead of us, but in many English-speaking nations there just isnt any party with a fraction of the ability, recognition and potential as the BNP.  And our ex-pats scattered across the world still only have one homeland to care about, one nation that remains truly theirs  this one.     Your responsibility  your choice     The British National Party needs a big wave of fresh donations, and we need them now! We need to pay our suppliers promptly, not just because we believe in being straight with people who are straight with us, but because we need their goodwill and help in the future. We need to rebuild our reserve funds so that we can beat off whatever attacks our opponents come up with next. And we need to be able to launch and run our twelve month local election campaign now, rather than letting vital weeks and months slip by.     Can you afford to help? Think of your children, your grandchildren, nephews and nieces  and ask yourself if you can afford not to!     You can donate  here  . Thank you.     N.b. Ex-pats who are on the UK electoral register can donate an unlimited amount to the BNP, whereas overseas donors not on the electoral register can only donate a maximum of £200 in one calendar year.     news from BNP website   http://www.bnp.org.uk/news_detail.php?newsId=306