Peter Whittle (politician)
| Peter Whittle AM | |
|---|---|
| Deputy Leader of the UK Independence Party | |
|
Assumed office 28 November 2016 | |
| Leader | Paul Nuttall |
| Preceded by | Paul Nuttall |
| UKIP Culture and Communities Spokesperson | |
|
Assumed office 24 July 2014 | |
| Leader |
Nigel Farage Diane James Paul Nuttall |
| Leader of the UK Independence Party in the London Assembly | |
|
Assumed office 6 May 2016 | |
| Leader |
Nigel Farage Diane James Paul Nuttall |
| Preceded by | Office created |
| Member of the London Assembly for UKIP (London-wide) | |
|
Assumed office 6 May 2016 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Peckham |
| Political party | UK Independence Party (2012–present) |
| Alma mater | University of Kent |
Peter Robin Whittle AM is a British politician and, since November 2016, the Deputy Leader of the UK Independence Party.
Whittle has served as an Assembly Member (AM) in the London Assembly, since the Assembly election in May 2016,[1][2] and was also UKIP's candidate, at the same hustings, for the 2016 London mayoral election.[3][4]
Career
Whittle was born in Peckham, South London, before studying at the University of Kent.[5] He worked in journalism, living for five years in Los Angeles,[6] before founding the New Culture Forum think-tank in 2006.[3]
He became UKIP's cultural spokesperson in 2013 [4] and stood for Eltham at the 2015 general election, coming third with 15% of the vote, beating both the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party.[5]
In September 2015, Whittle was selected as the UKIP candidate for Mayor of London, as well as topping the party list for election to the Greater London Assembly.[3] Openly gay, Whittle was the only LGBT candidate currently selected by any of the parties for the 2016 Mayoral election.[7]
On 12 October Whittle announced his intention to stand for UKIP leader following the resignation of Diane James after just 18 days; however, on reflection, he decided to stand for the position of deputy leader instead and was duly successful in this candidature. On 28 November 2016, it was announced that Whittle was the new Deputy Leader of UKIP, replacing Paul Nuttall, the new Party Leader.
References
- ↑ "Results 2016". London Elects. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
- ↑ "London Mayoral Election 2016: Labour dominate vote". BBC News. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
- 1 2 3 "UKIP selects Peter Whittle as London mayoral candidate". BBC. 26 September 2015. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
- 1 2 Banham, Mark (26 September 2015). "Ukip chooses Peter Whittle as London Mayor candidate ahead of deputy chair Suzanne Evans". International Business Times. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
- 1 2 "UKIP announces Mayoral candidate and list for GLA". UKIP. 26 September 2015. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
- ↑ Whittle, Peter (2008-05-07). Look at Me: Celebrating the Self in Modern Britain. London: Social Affairs Unit. ISBN 9781904863311.
- ↑ Duffy, Nick (26 September 2015). "UKIP picks gay candidate Peter Whittle to run for Mayor of London". Pink News. Retrieved 28 September 2015.