Only the BBC reporting this.
>
>Claims by BNP leader Nick Griffin that the UK winter will cause as
>many deaths as the Haiti earthquake have been condemned by the leader >of Labour MEPs.
They're hardly populist words; not unless showing yourself to be a total idiot is populist.
Mr Griffin's original postings, on Facebook and Twitter, said: "While
>the Haiti earthquake is terrible, the winter death toll in Britain
>will be similar. No aid here though."
So Nick Griffin can't tell the difference between people dying of old age and being killed by a catastophe. Hardly something to boast about.
Ms Willmott, Labour MEP for the East Midlands, said: "Yes, people will
>die here this winter, even though the Labour government set up a
>welfare state that spends billions to help prevent too many deaths."
Kind of proves the point, really. You can't stop people dying. All you can do is try to make sure they don't die before their time. And, unfortunately, people are more likely to die of age-related conditions in cold weather. There isn't really a lot you can do about that.
Mr Griffin, MEP for North West England, responded with another Twitter
>post, saying: "Individuals should give whatever they feel appropriate,
>but Britain is bankrupt. Fifty thousands pensioners will die... of
>cold this winter. "Boys get blown to bits because we can't afford to
>armour their Land Rovers.... Sending aid to rioting ingrates while our
>own people die is stinking elite hypocrisy."
There speaks a man who can't do simple maths.
Asked about Mr Griffin's comments, BNP deputy leader Simon Darby
>criticised the government's £6m contribution to the aid effort in
>Haiti. He said: "I'd rather see that £6m that we spent keeping our own
>people alive. You look after your own first."If they've got surplus
>money to give away to Haiti - how many people have died because we
>didn't have the infrastructure to grit the roads?"
No more than around 50, going by media reports.
Mark