On Jan 5th, the SDP issued the following Press Release:
“It is now public knowledge that Labour plotted to make this momentous change behind voters’ backs by abusing the Private Members’ Bill process”
The SDP recognises Assisted Dying as a conscience issue. However, if it is to be introduced it must be done so humanely, with utmost precaution and with well-funded alternatives in place. To our regret – and in a process that amounts to an affront to democracy – the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill has failed to attain the necessary standard for legislation of this importance.
It is now public knowledge that Labour plotted to make this momentous change behind voters’ backs by abusing the Private Members’ Bill process. As a result of this subterfuge, in place of the thoroughgoing processes on which Government Bills run, they have relied on the inadequate vehicle of a Private Members Bill. It has veered through Parliament with naive drafting, partisan sponsorship, and with reckless disregard for the impact on the values and integrity of the NHS, its staff and wider networks of caring and safeguarding.
“The extensions to eligibility for Assisted Dying seen in other jurisdictions might arise in Britain at the mere stroke of a Minister’s pen – a bleak and anti-democratic prospect”
Professional associations of those who work in these end-of-life situations and know how vulnerable those affected can be – from elder charities to coroners – have almost unanimously objected to the way this Bill handles the key issues. Their constructive suggestions have been set aside and disregarded.
In place of firm guard rails in law, this Bill leaves far too much to the whim of any existing or future Secretary of State. The extensions to eligibility for Assisted Dying seen in other jurisdictions might arise in Britain at the mere stroke of a Minister’s pen – a bleak and anti-democratic prospect.
The Government must finally accept that this is a wholly inappropriate approach for such a weighty matter. End-of-Life healthcare is a strategic, structural issue, not simply a question of individual autonomy. There is no true choice for individuals so long as the only alternative to early death is the inhumanity and neglect experienced by many senior citizens. This shameful little Bill sheds our social duties and shrugs off responsibility for caring for our most vulnerable fellow citizens. It satisfies neither those who favour nor those who oppose a right to euthanasia.
If Assisted Dying is ever to be brought into law in Britain it must be done so with requisite deliberation, proper consideration and with all of the necessary safeguards in place. The approach chosen and promoted by the government is demonstrably failing to achieve any of these and must be abandoned.
“This shameful little Bill sheds our social duties and shrugs off responsibility for caring for our most vulnerable fellow citizens”
The budget again confirmed the Labour Governments plan to introduce a Digital ID system, at a staggering provisionally forecast cost of £1.8billion. Below is the SDP Press Release from September which sums up many of the condemnations of these plans.
“Existing “right to work” checks are more than sufficient to stop the employment of illegal aliens. The government should instead crackdown on black market and gig economy firms”
William Clouston, SDP Leader:
“The SDP is the party of the patriotic state. We accept that sometimes individual liberties must be balanced against collective goods. But what collective good does digital ID solve? It does not solve the challenge of illegal migration – which is a problem only due to weak elites that refuse to use the tools they already have.
“Instead, I believe this new digital ID scheme is a desperate move by a teetering government to keep key backers of the Starmer government on-side. Big tech firms, and the sinister interest groups that have benefitted from their largesse, are turning the screws to force an expensive, insecure, and pointless digital ID system on the public while the political opportunity still remains. It must be rejected.”
London (26 September 2025) – The Social Democratic Party (SDP), Britain’s party of the patriotic state, opposes the government’s planned digital ID system – on four main grounds.
First, the SDP rejects the claim that such a system is necessary to reduce illegal migration. Existing “right to work” checks are more than sufficient to stop the employment of illegal aliens. The government should instead crackdown on black market and gig economy firms that fail to enforce existing right to work checks. Such a crackdown, paired with the detention and deportation of all illegal arrivals into Britain, would end the crisis of illegal migration.
Secondly, rather than being in the interests of the British people, the planned digital ID system exists to further the interests of multinational technology firms. The main domestic champion of digital ID, the Tony Blair Institute, has received several millions of pounds in donations since 2021 from Larry Ellison, co-founder and executive chairman of Oracle. Oracle may be a vendor for much of the enterprise database software that will underpin the government’s digital ID system.
“the system’s implementation will represent a wealth transfer in the order of tens of billions of pounds from the British people to Silicon Valley software firms”
Thirdly, the new digital ID system represents a blatant attempt at state capture by big tech. As constituted, the system’s implementation will represent a wealth transfer in the order of tens of billions of pounds from the British people to Silicon Valley software firms and contractors. The digital ID system will also grant big tech unprecedented access to vast amounts of data on the British public, allowing significant opportunities for profit at our collective expense.
Finally, the planned digital ID system is a security risk of unprecedented proportions. One Login, the existing system which will underpin the digital ID scheme, is riddled with fundamental security flaws. Many of the contractors for One Login have not undergone basic security vetting, with much of the development having been outsourced to Romania. Internal simulations of a cyberattack have shown that One Login can be commandeered by external actors to produce fake IDs, shut down the system nation-wide, and steal the IDs of millions of British citizens.
“The digital ID system will also grant big tech unprecedented access to vast amounts of data on the British public”
We spoke with Adam before the recent local elections when he was a candidate for the SDP in the Totteridge and Bowerdean ward of High Wycombe, for Buckinghamshire Council. We catch-up with him for his tales from the campaign trail.
“I am incredibly grateful to everyone who came up to High Wycombe to support me, especially since it’s an absolute hike to campaign in my ward”
You ran in the elections in May. Looking back what is your main memory of the campaign?
The feeling of achievement when I finished leafleting, my feet were killing me, I had one volunteer left and we’d just put through my last leaflet, and I was just so happy to have managed to reach my goal of covering the whole ward in SDP leaflets. I am incredibly grateful to everyone who came up to High Wycombe to support me, especially since it’s an absolute hike to campaign in my ward (It’s not called High Wycombe for no reason!)
The seat was won by Wycombe Independent’s and has received some press coverage. Did you have much interaction with other candidates or parties during the campaign?
My ward was a battleground between the Liberal Democrats and the Wycombe Independents with the occasional Labour sign. The Conservatives and Reform were non-existent and didn’t even turn up to the count. I interacted with all three of the other parties who actually turned up and put some work in and I got on very well with all of them.
The thing about local elections is that they all wanted to improve our local area, they just differed on how that should be done, so I appreciated the camaraderie.
The Lib Dems in particular were very kind to me, and they actually stood up for me online! I got a lot of abuse and harassment from Reform voters on Facebook but the Lib Dems and some of the other Buckinghamshire Independents supported me in my comment section. The abuse from Reform supporters was a bit of an eye-opener for me. As a party we get a lot of comments about how we should work with them or alternatively, merge, however after what I experienced I am disinclined towards that now.
“I only received one comment on the doorstop about Gaza, and I responded with SDP policy, that the issues in the Middle East won’t be solved in Buckinghamshire”
Do you have any funny stories or interesting encounters from campaigning?
I received a vaguely threatening email from the Palestine Solidarity Campaign in High Wycombe about signing their petition to force Buckinghamshire Council to disinvest from Israeli companies. I ignored it because I don’t engage in sectarian politics that has nothing to do with our local area, however, because I did so, my name and picture appeared in red in a video that the PSC produced, so that was an interesting experience!
I only received one comment on the doorstop about Gaza, and I responded with SDP policy, that the issues in the Middle East won’t be solved in Buckinghamshire and that we take a pro-British foreign policy outlook. I also ended up quoting Treebeard from Lord of the Rings at the gent who asked me the question – “I am on nobody’s side, because nobody is on my side” and he actually went from being a bit aggressive about the issue to then nodding, saying fair enough and asking me about potholes and the police!
What would you say to anyone thinking of becoming a candidate?
If anyone is tired of the situation in our nation and wants to try and improve things, but is scared to take a stance, don’t be. There’s a buildup and an almost fearful atmosphere about being a candidate, and the day before my first leafletting activity I was actively terrified of what I would face. However, with the support from both my partner and my party I managed to get out and face it, and I found that actually it wasn’t too bad! It’s quite an enjoyable experience and makes you feel like you -can- make a difference.
“Now it’s all about long term growth and building up the party infrastructure in High Wycombe”
What are your hopes now for your involvement in politics, for Totteridge and Bowerdean, for High Wycombe, and for Buckinghamshire?
I received 34 votes in the election, not an amazing result by any margin but I was only 96 votes behind the Conservatives, so I’ll take that. Now it’s all about long term growth and building up the party infrastructure in High Wycombe. This town is crying out for competent leadership and investment in its future, and I believe that the SDP can provide that, we just need to grow our membership in the area.
I have also started up a full-time position within the party as it’s Campaigns Organiser, I will be working on the ground across the country to help improve our chances of winning elections and providing this country with a genuine alternative political choice. Reform have shown that they don’t have the ability to maintain a coherent policy or governmental position and I worry that as time goes on, all of the councils that flipped to them will struggle to function.
The SDP is on the rise, it’ll take time and a lot of hard work, but it will be worth it and we will break through. We have to, the country and our very future depends on it.
David Bettney is the SDP candidate for Mayor of Doncaster. We spoke with David about his decision to stand.
“I am a former Regimental Sergeant Major who served 22 years in the British Army, and for the last 15 years I have been building and running successful companies”
Can you introduce yourself to our readers, and tell us what made you decide to run?
My name is David Bettney, and I am a former Regimental Sergeant Major who served 22 years in the British Army, and for the last 15 years I have been building and running successful companies (Construction, Logistics & Security) in the Middle East, employing over 350 people.
I decided to run for Doncaster Mayor, as I ran as South Yorkshire Mayor last year, and I came 3rd in the Doncaster area, beating the Lib Dems and Green’s vote combined.
“my top priority is to generate well paying jobs, to give Doncaster a much needed cash injection”
You’re the candidate for Mayor of Doncaster. What are the main concerns in the area?
There are many concerns, with freezing pensioners and antisocial behaviour, being very high up on the list (and I have a school’s program, to go into the schools and talk to the kids, about how I, and others from disadvantaged backgrounds, achieved a lot in the forces with the right mentors, and how can play a huge part in making our city a great place to live). But my top priority is to generate well paying jobs, to give Doncaster a much needed cash injection.
“We have become a giant NGO, without asking the people first, if they actually want to sponsor the world’s inhabitants to come here”
What do you see as the major issues more widely that if election you would use the profile of the role to champion?
The wider issues would be to use the platform to stop the invasion on the South coast, and remove anybody here illegally, just the same as British citizens face when abroad if they have incorrect or no paperwork. We have become a giant NGO, without asking the people first, if they actually want to sponsor the world’s inhabitants to come here and live on our small island!
It’s simple, we either choose to use the law or we become lawless 🙁
How can people find out more or get involved in the campaign?
Paul Murphy is the SDP candidate in the Runcorn & Helsby by-election being held on May 1st. We spoke with Paul about his decision to stand.
“I care deeply about the constituency and the country and believe that together we can end the indifference that exists within our political system”
Can you introduce yourself to our readers, and tell us what made you decide to run again?
I was born and raised in Bradford, West Yorkshire, but have lived in Cheshire for the last 10 years. I’ve now lived in Ashton Hayes for 3 years with my wife, daughter and 2 dogs.
I’m not a career politician; I’ve worked in IT as a Product Manager for 22 years. I’ve spent the majority of that time focusing on finding out what people want, then working to deliver it.
As a typical no-nonsense Yorkshireman, I can assure you that with me what you see is what you get. I care deeply about the constituency and the country and believe that together we can end the indifference that exists within our political system.
I decided to stand again for very similar reasons to why I stood last time, people deserve the opportunity to have a real say in the running of the country, something that they do not get considering how similar the two major parties are.
“From the need for well-paying industrialised jobs, to the erosion of the basic services that we all rely on – we can all see that the UK is heading in the wrong direction”
What do you see as the major local concerns for residents in the constituency?
The main concerns haven’t changed since the general election, people feel that the government is out of touch and have a general indifference to the daily lives for their constituents. From the need for well-paying industrialised jobs, to the erosion of the basic services that we all rely on – we can all see that the UK is heading in the wrong direction, and I feel that the SDP is best placed to get the country back on track.
“The reindustrialisation of the UK economy is the area that would be my main goal in parliament”
If elected, what national issues do you hope to champion?
The reindustrialisation of the UK economy is the area that would be my main goal in parliament. The country will simply be unable to grow until we start to produce things for ourselves.
How can people find out more or get involved in the campaign?
Adam Williams is the SDP candidate for Totteridge and Bowerdean in May’s Buckinghamshire Council elections. We spoke with Adam about his decision to stand.
“my standing is an investment in the future of our town. I want to see it succeed for my children and their children after them”
Can you introduce yourself to our readers, and tell us what made you decide to run?
My name is Adam Williams, I’m 27 years old and originally from the West Midlands. I’ve set up shop in Buckinghamshire and I am putting down roots in Wycombe. I’ve decided to run because I believe that High Wycombe offers a lot of potential for young people and their families, and my standing is an investment in the future of our town. I want to see it succeed for my children and their children after them.
I’m standing for the Social Democratic Party as the party of the traditional left. We’re culturally conservative and left leaning on economics. We seek the common good of the British people. We believe in a social market economy, the family, the fraternity of the British nation and aim to provide a political party for those who have given up on the current batch in Parliament and are looking for a hopeful alternative.
“Windrush Drive has appalling potholes, the Red Kite council estate is in disrepair and the tenants are not looked after properly”
You’re the candidate for Totteridge and Bowerdean. What are the main concerns in the area?
Windrush Drive has appalling potholes, the Red Kite council estate is in disrepair and the tenants are not looked after properly, the London Road is used a racetrack at times, and we have major issues with speeding. We’re seeing a rise in major crime events, just the other day the train station had police surrounding it, as well as minor ones such as fly tipping, making the area feel dirty and unsafe.
“I would push for the construction of data centres in Iver and Wycombe in order to facilitate economic growth in the county”
What do you see as the major issues more widely across Buckinghamshire, and if elected, what do you hope to champion?
The major issues across Buckinghamshire and what will I champion are:
Drug Crime and associated disorder
Pressures the council budget faces from unfunded mandates
Economic growth – more jobs in the county rather than being a stop over for London commuters, in particular low and medium skill jobs.
Housing for young people
I would push for the construction of data centres in Iver and Wycombe in order to facilitate economic growth in the county, and in my ward in particular I would be focusing on anti-social behaviour, such as littering, fly tipping and speeding, pressuring the council to carry out much needed road repair and advocating for a restoration of the Red Kite council housing to properly suit the tenants needs.
“We seek the common good of the British people. We believe in a social market economy, the family, the fraternity of the British nation”
How can people find out more or get involved in the campaign?
The New Culture Forum believe that cultural issues are the defining ones of our time. They believe that too often our enemies and our opinion formers appear to agree that Western culture is indefensible or a source purely of shame. The New Culture Forum has been challenging the cultural orthodoxies dominant in the media, academia, education, and wider British culture.
Join us on Wednesday 20th November for our drinks and conversation with Stephen Balogh the New Culture Forum National Organiser and candidate for the SDP in Ealing Central & Acton. For drinks, a conversation and Q&A with Stephen about the New Culture Forum, cultural concerns and his experience running for parliament, come along Wednesday 20th November at 7pm.
This is part of our #ThirdWednesday drinks and events, we hold these in association with Dick Delingpole’s #ThirdWednesday Libertarian drinks club, and POLITICS in PUBS a group of people from across the political spectrum who value the freedom to question and to speak openly.
We recently held a public meeting in Purley and were joined by 2 local candidates from the recent General Election; Vinayak Malhotra, who stood for Reform UK in Croydon West and Damon Young, who stood for the SDP in Epsom & Ewell. We talked about their experiences of the campaign and their future plans.
“I sat down in February ‘24 to begin to discuss how we would go about things. The SDP in Coventry did not exist at that time”
Some reflections on the 2024 campaign. Like many of you, I’ve bemoaned the capabilities of many of our MP’s. The nadir for me came in 2019 when Jeremy Corbyn parachuted a young lady with several years’ experience working at Primark into the safe Labour seat of Coventry South
In 2023 I met William Clouston of the SDP and over the next 12 months we had dozens of conversations and I became convinced that standing on the side lines was no longer an option. My wife was concerned about potential reputational damage as UK politics appears like a piranha tank. But around January 2024, I decided that I was going to take the plunge. My oldest friend and now parliamentary agent, Paul Crilly, and I sat down in February ‘24 to begin to discuss how we would go about things. The SDP in Coventry did not exist at that time.
Our politics were moderate. We both believed that if you worked 40 hours a week 46 weeks a year you want to be able to afford a modest home of your own. We felt that the government should be competent and not expand its scope beyond what it was capable of delivering successfully.
“As we are experienced construction professionals, neither of us can wrap our heads around the ludicrous costs and time delays of major UK Infrastructure projects like HS2 and Hinckley C”
We’ve both experienced terrible healthcare with the NHS but continue to believe in the principle of a single payer, free at the point of use health service. Neither of us care if it’s a black cat or a white cat so long as it catches mice – we hold no theological views on the NHS. As we are experienced construction professionals, neither of us can wrap our heads around the ludicrous costs and time delays of major UK Infrastructure projects like HS2 and Hinckley C. We are convinced we can do better. We see massive waste on big sites which no politician discusses.
We both believe that natural monopolies belong in the state sector as regulatory capture is unavoidable given the asymmetry of resources (I.e. accountants and lawyers) between the owners and the regulator. Begging the French to build our nuclear power stations is embarrassing. We were on opposite sides of the Brexit referendum, but both agreed that the result should be respected.
My own view is that with the rapid acceleration of technologically driven change it is even more important that our government is flexible and responsive to voters. And that brings me back to our representatives who are, in aggregate, simply not up to the job. Would you hire our current MP for any serious job? I doubt it. We may not win this time, but we will put down the roots of a winning organisation having gone from 0 to 15 volunteers.
“Just by being on the campaign trail and being visible has changed the calculus for people who are trapped in the Labour party but who vehemently oppose many of its trendy shibboleths”
After the holidays, we’ll start to build for the next phase. We’ll build our social media presence across all four major platforms. We’ll create a Coventry wide SDP structure, contribute to the creation of national policy and locally we’ll recruit and start to train our members.
Just by being on the campaign trail and being visible has changed the calculus for people who are trapped in the Labour party but who vehemently oppose many of its trendy shibboleths. I would be disappointed if we are not 50 people by Christmas and that is just the beginning. The public has responded positively to our common-sense proposals. The British people are fair minded and generous, but they have limits and those are being tested. They want cheaper housing, cheaper energy, more training, better paid and higher skilled jobs.
“Many, far too many, maybe as many as 20-25% have given up on politics altogether. This is an indictment of our political class and our elites who’ve become tone deaf to the messages sent”
Having held more than 4000 one-to-one conversations my assessment is that the public want an effective state that can get things done and struck off the ‘to do’ list. They are sympathetic towards LGB rights but reject broader identity politics and don’t want to be told what to think.
Many, far too many, maybe as many as 20-25% have given up on politics altogether. This is an indictment of our political class and our elites who’ve become tone deaf to the messages sent with increasing vigour by the population, contrast this with Denmark.
Politics which offers cheap energy through a new fleet of British designed, British built nuclear power stations regulated through an ‘underwriter certification’ system rather than the unfit for purpose ALARA principle will lay the groundwork for a renaissance of UK manufacturing.
Just last week Britain’s richest man and our leading industrialist Sir Jim Radcliffe warned of the deindustrialisation of Europe due to costly energy. We can’t run an industrial society without cheap dispatchable energy and if it’s not to be fossil fuels, then it has to be nuclear. We are proposing that a new school of Nuclear Engineering, Design and Regulation is established at Warwick University in Coventry South to lead our efforts to deliver rapidly on this urgently needed capacity. We need to treat this like the Mulberry Harbour or the Manhattan Project.
Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) will take 20% of US electricity by 2027 and if we want to stay competitive, we’ll need to INCREASE our grid capacity and ensure its stability. We’re currently co-leading the world in AGI but if we don’t have cheap energy, we’ll become an also ran.
In the 1950s, 60s and 70’s both parties delivered 500k homes a year for a population of 50m souls. We need to get the state back into building houses and simultaneously getting a grip on mass immigration without which no amount of building will eliminate the backlog for 75 million souls. Building creates British jobs, British apprenticeships and British high-weight, low-value products that need to be produced locally. This plus cheap energy will help spur our re-industrialisation. Young people with no stake in society won’t abide by or respect our norms or rules.
They need affordable housing and energy to start families and prevent demographic collapse which in used to justify more immigration or Human Quantitative Easing (HQE) but ignores the externalities bourn overwhelmingly by working class British communities. There’s a general acceptance of controlled immigration that makes us richer but real anger at the mess we’re currently in which has delivered the population of six Birmingham’s in ten years.
I got into this because I’m not willing to accept the country we are leaving to our children. I hope and pray we are not too late.
Maya Severyn is the SDP prospective candidate for Waveney Valley. We spoke with Maya about her decision to stand.
“In this election my key points are to Bring Trust Back into Politics, and to Bring Democracy Back to the People”
Can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers?
My name is Maya Severyn, and I believe in service before self. In this election my key points are to Bring Trust Back into Politics, and to Bring Democracy Back to the People.
I am a Project Manager in IT, born and brought up in London, have lived and worked in Europe for 15 years and have come back to settle in Suffolk
What made you decide to stand for the SDP?
I joined the SDP as, like many others, I had considered myself ‘politically homeless’. Having previously voted Labour I began to realise that the Labour Parliamentary party was no longer representative or interested in the Labour Movement. Having been at one time a Shop Steward, but also running my own company, I believe in the benefits of a mixed economy; nationalisation of core infrastructure can and should sit alongside private enterprise.
“I live here, I work here and to be honest I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else! I am a local town councillor”
You’re the Spokesman for Waveney Valley what’s made you decide to represent this area?
I live here, I work here and to be honest I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else! I am a local town councillor, and, from experience, I am frustrated that there is only so much which can be resolved at a local level and so my hope is to be given the opportunity and mandate to address the challenges and opportunities for the people here as a member of Parliament.
“We are a rural constituency, with a widespread population, and there are many concerns about transport infrastructure and access to basic services”
What do you see as the big concerns for the constituency and what issues do you hope to champion?
Agriculture is at the heart of this constituency, and has my full support. We are a rural constituency, with a widespread population, and there are many concerns about transport infrastructure and access to basic services.
Employment and training opportunities for young people plus, of course, affordable housing to enable them to start their own family homes.
The other big issue is of course the Norwich-Essex pylon scheme, which I wholeheartedly oppose, as being disruptive to our communities, damaging to our farms and environment and unnecessary; better options exist!
For those eager to help, how can they get involved in the campaign?
