Volunteer Political Party facts for kids

The Volunteer Political Party (VPP) was a loyalist political group in Northern Ireland. It was started on June 22, 1974, by members of the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF). The UVF had recently become a legal group again.

The leader of the VPP was Ken Gibson from East Belfast. He had been held in prison before and was a top leader in the UVF at that time. The UVF leaders saw how much power they had after a big worker strike. They wanted to use this power in politics. The UVF had been banned in 1966, but the British government made it legal again in April 1974. This was done to encourage loyalist and republican groups to get involved in politics instead of violence.

What the VPP Believed In

The VPP shared its ideas at a press conference on September 27. They called their plan "The Volunteer Political Party - a progressive and forward thinking unionist party."

The party was influenced by the Northern Ireland Labour Party. They were against holding people in prison without a trial. They also did not want Northern Ireland to become fully independent. Instead, they wanted resources to be shared more fairly in poorer parts of the United Kingdom. The VPP tried to join a larger group called the United Ulster Unionist Council (UUUC). However, other main unionist parties did not want to be connected to groups like the UVF. So, the VPP was not allowed to join.

The Election and Why It Failed

Ken Gibson ran for election in the West Belfast area in October 1974. This area included parts of the Shankill district. Even though it was risky, the VPP also tried to get votes in the Catholic Falls Road area.

The VPP said they stood up for the working class people. An election leaflet talked about the bad living conditions in the Shankill area. In the election, Gibson had support from other important people. These included Glen Barr from the Vanguard group, Charles Harding Smith from the West Belfast Ulster Defence Association, and local councillor Hugh Smyth. Hugh Smyth later helped start the Progressive Unionist Party.

Gibson ran against Johnny McQuade from the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). McQuade was the official candidate for the UUUC. Gibson only received 2,690 votes, which was about 6% of all votes. This was only 14% of the votes from unionist supporters.

Because they did not get many votes, the party was closed down the next month. All the UVF commanders met and decided this. A statement said that the low number of votes showed that people did not want the UVF to be involved in politics. They felt it would be pointless to continue the Volunteer Political Party. Most of its members went back to the UVF. Some of these members later helped create the Progressive Unionist Party. The UVF then returned to using violence and was banned again by the British government on October 4, 1975.

Sources

• Steve Bruce, The Red Hand, 1992, ISBN: 0-19-215961-5
• Jim Cusack & Henry McDonald, UVF, 2000, ISBN: 1-85371-687-1
• Sarah Nelson, Ulster's Uncertain Defenders, 1984, ISBN: 0-904651-99-1
• Tim Pat Coogan, The Troubles: Ireland's Ordeal, 1966-1996, and the Search for Peace. ISBN: 0-09-179146-4. Hutchinson, 1995.
• Frenett, Ross. "‘Protestant Socialists’? Ulster Loyalism and Working-Class Politics:1969-1974," Scrinium, University College Cork (2010). https://www.academia.edu/24559678/_Protestant_Socialists_Ulster_Loyalism_and_Working-class_Politics_1969-1974/