Media attention yesterday was pointed the way of Tory Leeds candidate (and former UKIP MEP), Amjad Bashir, for comments he made about British Jews returning from Israel ‘brainwashed’. He remains the candidate…
30 miles down the road from his constituency lies Stalybridge and Hyde, where Bashir’s son, Tayub Amjad, is contending also for the Tories.
Back in 2014, Bashir’s family restaurant was fined for breaking immigration law, having hired four illegal immigrants. At the time Bashir pointed to Companies House which listed him as having stepped down from the directorship a month before immigration authorities raided the restaurant. His son, however, was at the time – and remains – a director of the business. Given the Tories have made a big showing on immigration controls this election, he’s an odd choice of candidate to field…
Remember Amjad Bashir? He was the UKIP Walter Mitty whose disastrous defection to the Tories made headlines this time last year. One of the many revelations that led to the turncoat’s story unravelling was his relationship with George Galloway’s Respect Party. Respect said Amjad was a former member, a claim he denied via a Tory spokesman: “he’s denied he’s ever had anything to do with Respect… Amjad denies it”. Guido never believed him, and at last there is photo evidence to prove it…
“He’s never had anything to do with Respect…”
Despite Guido’s repeated overtures at the time, the Tory press office never let us interview Amjad. The offer is still open…
H/T RaheemKassam
Grant Shapps’ speech this morning bashing Labour’s “month of chaos” descended into a Q&A about Amjad Bashir. Asked by Guido about Amjad’s links with Respect, the Tory chairman insisted “I welcome anybody, regardless of where they’ve been in the past… with the exception of extreme parties”. Presumably George Galloway’s loony left mob aren’t “extreme”.
Shapps wouldn’t be drawn on how he feels about Bashir telling the Tories he had never had anything to do with Respect, telling Guido “Mr Bashir will no doubt answer any of your questions”. Despite “Mr Bashir”, as Shapps repeatedly called him, revealing the Tories had banned him from speaking to the press. As a third question came in Shapps protested “I can’t believe cynical hacks are believing this stuff. It’s pretty desperate”, insisting “yes”, it has still been a “successful” defection. Tempting fate with the Sundays sniffing around…
Amjad Bashir has not been seen since he was kidnapped by the Tory party. Amjad’s captors have released a hostage photo of him alongside their leader, but they are not allowing him any contact with the outside world. Protesters outside the captors’ HQ have been threatened by Tory party security. Bring back our Bashir…
Speaking last year, Bashir said:
“We don’t trust him.”
Suspect Dave might well now be saying the same about Amjad…
Guido has spoken with Amjad Bashir by telephone this afternoon to ask him for a response to the slew of stories that have emerged about him over the last 48 hours. An extremely nervous sounding MEP refused to comment, pleading that he had been gagged his new party:
“I’m not allowed to give a statement. They have all the answers”.
When Guido asked if he had ever been a member of Respect, he hung up.
Yesterday a Conservative Party spokesman contacted Guido to directly ask him to clarify that Bashir “denied he’s ever had anything to do with Respect”. Today that line has shifted to silence. It’s becoming increasingly clear that the Tories were misled by Bashir in this regard.
First thing this morning Guido contacted the CCHQ to ask which of these allegations Bashir now denied:
- He was previously a member of the Labour Party.
- He was previously a member of the UK Independence Party.
- He was previously a member of the Respect Party.
- He was previously a member of the Conservative Party (prior to this time, if indeed he is now actually now a paid up party member).
- That he was a director of a restaurant which was raided for employing illegal immigrants.
- That he withdrew a complaint about reporting of the restaurant matter on counsel’s advice because his counsel felt he was misled about the facts of the matter.
A full working day later and they have refused to comment. Instead, Bashir’s Twitter account has mysteriously been deactivated and he has been banned from the airwaves. Is the Prime Minister still ‘delighted’ by the defection?
