Pirate Party Announces Nine Candidates Officially Nominated for the General Election

This statement can be downloaded here.

The Pirate Party UK is pleased to announce that nine candidates have now been officially nominated for the General Election on 6th May. These candidates have been selected by the members - and ratified by the Party - to represent it in its first election campaign, to promote the policies and ideals of the party, and to help raise the concerns of citizens worried about their digital rights. The candidates selected cover a broad swath of constituencies across England and Scotland.

The Party campaigns on three core policies: the reform of copyright and patent law, the restoration and protection of citizens civil liberties, particularly the right to personal privacy, and upholding the right to freedom of speech and communication. It has campaigned recently against the passage of the Digital Economy Act 2010, a law which could see significant curbs put on citizens online rights.

Outside of these three policies, the Prospective Parliamentary Candidates are encouraged to formulate their own opinions and policies on all other matters according to the wishes and concerns of their constituents. Several PPCs have done just that by deciding to stand on the Direct Democracy platform, through which their policies on any given issue are directly shaped by the votes of their constituency.

The final details of the 9 candidates who are officially nominated to stand for the Pirate Party UK are as follows:

• Andrew Robinson, Party Leader (41) - Worcester
  
• Finlay Archibald (19) - Glasgow Central
  
• Tim Dobson (19) - Manchester Gorton
  
• Shaun Dyer (26) - Leicester West
  
• David Geraghty (19) - Derby North
  
• Graeme Lambert (19) - Bury North
  
• Luke Leighton (40) - South West Surrey
  
• Jack Nunn (24) - Cities of Westminster and London
  
• Alexander van Terheyden (29) - Bethnal Green and Bow

Whilst the Pirate Party UK had announced its intention to stand ten candidates this May, unfortunately Mark Sims (37), an ICT teacher who was to stand in East Ham, was unable to complete the necessary registration form for the Electoral Commission before the end of the nomination period after being stranded abroad due to the volcanic eruption in Iceland. Mark said via Twitter that he was "really gutted" about being unable to stand but will still work on "promoting the candidates that are still running".

The Nominating Officer of the Pirate Party UK, John Barron said: "It has been an interesting and hectic time this month for all of us involved in such a young party. Obviously the inability to stand Mark Sims this May is regrettable, but I am confident that the remaining candidates will put in a strong showing for the Pirate Party, and for the rights of their constituents, both online and offline. Hopefully Mark will be able to stand again in future; we plan to fight many elections yet."