Postal workers' union says it will no longer hold meetings at Peterborough club that hosted Nigel Farage

A workers’ union says it will no longer hold its meetings at Peterborough’s Post Office, Sports and Social Club after it hosted Nigel Farage.

The Communication Workers Union (CWU), which represents postal workers, says that the event last week was “a bit of a kick in the head” for its members, some of whom will also revoke their memberships to the club.

Mr Farage broadcast an episode of his GB News show ‘Farage at Large’ live from the clubhouse on Thursday, 25 May, in which he discussed the UK’s latest net migration figures with guests including Peterborough’s MP Paul Bristow.

He was joined by a live studio audience which included former Peterborough City Council (PCC) leader John Peach and former Brexit Party parliamentary candidate and entrepreneur Mike Greene.

CWU branch secretary Andy Beeby said: “We won’t be using the Post Office Club for any meetings in the future. I’ve been a member for 40 years — since I left school and joined the Royal Mail — but I’ve cancelled my membership because we shouldn’t be associating ourselves with Farage and his politics.”

He added that the Post Office Club is “right in the middle of an area full of people who have come from other countries” and that “to have Farage there, it beggars belief”.

Club says it didn't initially know who booking was for

A spokesperson for the club’s committee said in response that it didn’t initially know who the booking was for and that it needs money from private bookings to stay viable.

“This was a private booking and it was not known until the day before who it was for and who was going to be invited,” the spokesperson said.

“No club can afford to turn down a full days’ bookings; in the current climate we need to hire out the concert room to ensure we stay a viable club. This avoids us closing as other clubs have done.

“The club has no association with Royal Mail except to allow members to have their membership fees deducted from their wages each week/month instead of paying the full fee in January each year.

“Andy Beeby only enters the club when they have a meeting, which we do not charge for union meetings, and a reduced fee for the odd social event they want to hold.”

'Kick in the head' for CWU members

Mr Beeby says that he used to be regular at the club for many years, although family issues have prevented such regular attendance more recently.

He also clarified that while the union doesn’t pay for the space itself, it’s supplied business in the past by paying for food and drinks during meetings.

CWU Regional Secretary Paul Moffat has also criticised the club’s decision to host Mr Farage, saying that it “hasn’t gone down very well at all” with members.

“It’s a bit of a kick in the head for them when you’ve got Nigel Farage turning up and the local MP, who doesn’t do a lot for Peterborough anyway,” he continued.

“He’s very right-wing along with Farage. It’s controversial, right-wing figures [coming] into a club that was borne out of postal workers and the Royal Mail.”

MP says including criticism of his record from left-wing activists is 'cheap'

Mr Bristow, who represents the Conservative Party, said that it’s “cheap” to include criticism of him from the union, which has a history of support for the Labour Party, in this story.

“I’m astonished that a left-wing activist's view of my record as an MP is deemed relevant in a story about the Post Office Club hosting the Farage show,” he said. “It’s cheap and completely irrelevant."

“I am very proud of my record," he continued. "Since I became our MP, Peterborough has secured over £100 million of capital investment for our University, a new NHS Community Diagnostic Centre, and £48 million for a new Station Quarter. Peterborough has not had a fair share in the past, but we are changing that.

“As for boycotting the club, I have also drank in the Draper’s Arms. Are they going to boycott that too? Peterborough is my city. The place I grew up. I certainly won’t be bullied by one or two left-wing activists.”

Mr Farage himself did not respond to a request for a response to the CWU’s comments, but did say during his show that being in Peterborough on the day the Office for National Statistics (ONS) released its net migration statistics was a coincidence.

But he also said, speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS), that it seems “pretty appropriate” to be in the city on the day the figures were released as it has “profound local issues” including a "growing population and a housing crisis".

Council leader 'disappointed' not to have appeared on show

PCC leader Wayne Fitzgerald (Conservatives, West) was also due to appear on Mr Farage's show, but admitted he was “dropped” in favour of Mr Bristow on the night.

He said he was “very disappointed not to have gone” and that he "likes Nigel Farage as a personality" even though he doesn't agree with him on everything.

He chaired his own Conservative group instead, he said, and “talked positively about the future”.