- guardian.co.uk, Monday October 30 2000 03.34 GMT
In instructions sent to BNP activists via the internet, the leadership of Britain's largest neo-fascist group warned them not to "take any BNP literature or mention their political affiliation in earshot of reporters or police officers".
This was to avoid the government and media being able to "use the involvement of BNP activists on some of the blockades as a propaganda stick with which to beat and scare the protest organisers" as, the party claimed, happened last month. The racist group nevertheless planned to be "heavily involved" in the expected tax protests, once the protester's 60-day moratorium has expired, but advised BNP hauliers, farmers and taxi drivers to take part "in their private capacity".
Its chairman, Nick Griffin, pledged recently: "If the protests resume, then our people will be out there."
Extreme rightwing groups had a significant presence at several fuel blockades last month, and protest leaders have expressed concern that they will step up their involvement. Rhys Park, a protest leader at Cardiff docks, said the role of BNP activists had been a "big factor" in calling off the blockade there.
BNP members were also reported to have taken part in protests at Grangemouth in Falkirk and Coryton refinery in Essex, and National Front members were involved in a confrontation with farmers at the blockade at Ellesmere Port, Cheshire.
The record of intimidation of tanker drivers submitted by the oil companies to the government's fuel tax task force referred to an incident on September 10 in Hythe, Hampshire: "National Front supporters at gate. Bails of hay placed at gate with threats that they would be set alight. Cigarettes stubbed out on truck."
More recently, according to industry sources, independent hauliers have been bombarded with letters from the BNP calling on them to support the expected protests next month.
Racist leaflets circulated by the BNP - ostensibly dealing with the fuel tax issue - feature a picture of Tony Blair as a highwayman holding petrol pumps instead of pistols, as similar recent Tory party leaflets do with the chancellor.
A spokesman for the GMB general union, which represents workers at oil terminals and supermarket depots targeted for the new blockades, yesterday called for police action against far right groups involved in the fuel protests.
"If there is evidence that racist and inflammatory literature is being distributed at blockades," he said, "those involved should be arrested. This is not a freedom of speech issue; we are talking about physical intimidation and racial harassment."
