Man without a Panzer; Brexit Party candidate Colin Mitchelson gets 15 minutes of fame for his picture of him wearing Nazi-era German helmet row and not using real name in election, he is standing in Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath, but I doubt his chances of winning….. his deposit back, he is a paper candidate in my opinion, making up the numbers, and trying to displace Labour from winning the seat

Dear All

One thing, you tend to notice in politics is those who are willing to work, and those who don’t when it comes to activism, basically some people think they are ‘managers’ when in fact, everyone should be an activist. When it comes to campaigning, it really is all hands on deck, there are no passengers, passengers bring the team spirit down, they are a nuisance who really should be some place else.

During the early part of the year, I left the Labour Party after being headhunted to do the Brexit Party campaign; this gave me an opportunity to help others learn about how to be a campaigner. The EU election, for me, was a hoot, as it turned out, I was needed to do campaigning all over Glasgow and the West of Scotland, I even made it down as far as Gretna and Dumfries on the border. During the Glasgow stint of campaign on Argyle Street, the lead candidate along with some other candidates turned up for a ‘meet and greet’ the people. Tagging along with them was their ‘minder’.

When I asked who this guy who just stood there not taking part, I was told he was Mr M, which I found was odd, who rattles about keeping their name a secret, it was un-usual behaviour, even for politics. Not only did this person not campaign, he didn’t even make an attempt to engage with the activists, which was why I noticed him stick out like a sore thumb. Now, he appears to have gone from minder to being a Brexit Party candidate. His name is Colin Mitchelson, aka Mr M, he is an ex soldier, and in this election, he is contesting Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath. It seems however that he is not using his real name in the election, instead calling himself Mitch William.

Given he was to me, an odd character, looking nervous and disengaged, I doubt his chances in winning Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath, or being anything other than a paper candidate. As well as being the candidate, he is also is listed as the election agent for Mitch William, but both men are the same person. The reason he is making the press, is that a photo was found of him posing in a Nazi-era German helmet, and sunglasses, presumably no one had access to a Panzer Mk IV or even a King Tiger tank.

Mitchelson, used to be an aide for eccentric former UKIP MEP David Coburn, Coburn in this election is urge all Brexit minded people to vote Conservative, probably even in Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath. Scottish Green candidate Scott Rutherford said:

“People are telling me this election is important because it is electing an MP that could sit for five years. They want someone who will take issues seriously like the climate emergency and the future of Mossmorran. It’s not a fancy dress competition.”

If you want people to take you seriously, why would you be the Scottish Green Party, the proxy party for the SNP?  No Scottish Green will be elected to Westminster in this election, like Mitchelson, the best they can hope for is not to lose their deposit.

£500 is still £500.  

A spokesperson for Fife Council said:

“Mr Mitchelson is standing under his commonly used name of “Mitch Williams”, However, there’s no such provision for agents in relation to commonly used names - they must give their full names, which he has done. As a result he will appear on the ballot paper with one name but is on the list of agents under a different name.”

A spokesman for the Brexit Party said:

“‘Mitch’ is what the candidate is known as. William is a middle name. Our lawyers tell us it is not uncommon to use a name other than that on one’s birth certificate.”

Basically, he hasn’t broken any rules other than looking like an oddball; of course, he isn’t the first and won’t be the last person in this election to look stupid. The Lib Dems and the toy parrot running sketch was filmed; Mitchelson’s stupidity is just a picture. And the use of cheap sunglasses, along with the helmet reminds me of ‘oddball’ in Kelly’s Heroes’. The real fight in Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath is between Labour and SNP, Labour’s candidate is Lesley Laird who is fighting off an SNP challenge. Colin Mitchelson is just making up the numbers, along with the Scottish Green candidate, however the Brexit Party tactic is to displace as many sitting MPs  as possible, so his mission is to get Labour voters to switch to the Brexit Party.

Cause and effect could be, he lets the SNP in by default.

Finally, Colin Mitchelson is an odd fish, and as such, I think the public will go off him pretty quickly, assuming he actually campaigns in this seat. I think he is a paper candidate; he certainly didn’t strike me as a people person.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University