UKIP in Scotland is down to about 300 members according to sources within the party. So no wonder that David Coburn, the UKIP leader in Scotland, looks like a man who has just swallowed a turd, especially given the derisory response to the party's appeals for candidates to run in the Scottish local elections next month.
UKIP in the Lothian region which covers Edinburgh even promised putative candidates that they would only have to face a simplified vetting process, according to leaked internal emails. Alas, UKIP can only managed to field two candidates in the whole of Edinburgh, which is down from the half dozen or so who said that would consider standing.
The problem seems to be that the party has lost what few sane and sensible people it had in Scotland, which was never very many to be honest. Alan Melville, who is both sane and sensible, has announced that he will stand as an independent for the Edinburgh council seat of Leith Walk, and this blog wishes him well, since the council chamber would benefit from his presence.
Given that UKIP cannot even manage more than 45 candidates across the whole of Scotland, we must ask ourselves why anyone bothers with the party, given that it achieved its aim of helping to force a referendum and then going on the help win it.
I may cast a preference for Alan Melville, as he is a decent bloke, but I think he made a wise move dumping UKIP.
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