Anthony Bennett (Veritas politician) facts for kids

Anthony John Stuart Bennett was born on 7 September 1947. He is an English former solicitor, which is a type of lawyer, and has also been a candidate for public office. He was a member of the British political party Veritas. For a short time, he was listed as the official leader of Veritas by the Electoral Commission, before the real leader, Robert Kilroy-Silk, was announced.

Early Life and Education

Anthony Bennett went to Bournemouth School. He then studied at Sheffield University, where he earned a first-class degree in geography. He also attended the London School of Economics and the University of Nottingham, where he gained qualifications in social work. Later, he studied at Hertfordshire University.

He is married and has two children.

Professional Life

From 1978 to 1987, Bennett worked as the main Welfare Rights Adviser for Harlow Council. After that, he led the Money Advice Unit for Hertfordshire County Council until 1992.

In 1995, he became a solicitor. He later decided to stop working as a solicitor in 2009.

Today, Anthony Bennett works as an independent rights adviser and writes for Christian newspapers.

Political Involvement

Bennett became active in politics when he lived in Derbyshire from 1972 to 1978. In May 1976, he was elected to the North East Derbyshire District Council as an Independent Labour candidate. He served there until 1978. When he moved to Harlow in 1978, he joined the local Constituency Labour Party in 1985.

In the 1980s, Bennett started two credit unions. These are financial groups that help people save money and get loans at fair rates. The two groups later joined together to form HarlowSave Credit Union.

In November 1997, Bennett left the Labour party and joined the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP). He became a campaign manager for UKIP in the Eastern Region and worked as a political assistant for Jeffrey Titford, who was a UKIP MEP.

In 2000, he helped start the UKIP's Metric Martyrs Fund. This fund supported traders who wanted to keep using old measurements like pounds and ounces, instead of the newer metric system. He ran for UKIP in the Harlow area during the 2001 General Election.

Bennett is a Eurosceptic, meaning he is cautious or opposed to the idea of closer ties with the European Union. He was part of The Drive the Flag campaign. This group wanted to allow national flags, like the Union flag, on vehicle number plates in the UK. The government later agreed to this in 2001.

In 2005, Bennett became a founding member of the Veritas Party. He also helped create the Campaign for a Referendum on the European Constitution (CREC). This group wanted the public to vote on whether the UK should adopt the European Constitution. After the government agreed to a referendum, the group changed its name to the Campaign to Reject the European Constitution. Bennett ran for the Veritas party in Harlow in the 2005 general election.

Campaigns Against Metric Signs

In 2001, while still with UKIP, Bennett co-founded "Active Resistance to Metrication" (A.R.M.). This group was against using the metric system for measurements.

As part of this campaign, Bennett removed some road and footpath signs that showed distances in metres. He believed these signs were not legally placed. He was charged for removing signs in Kent. A court found him responsible for damaging property, but the punishment was very light. He was arrested several times for similar actions but only had one conviction.

Bennett has also been involved with CountyWatch. This group moves road signs that mark modern county borders to show the historic county borders instead. They believe they are allowed to do this under a law called the Highways Act 1980.