Canvey Island Independent Party

Canvey Island Independent Party
LeaderDavid Blackwell
TreasurerMichael John Fuller
Nominating OfficerRobert James Ford
Founded22 April 2004
Headquarters96 Central Avenue
Canvey Island
Essex
IdeologyLocalism
Separate local council for Canvey Island[1]
Castle Point Borough Council
14 / 39
Essex County Council (Castle Point seats)
0 / 5
Website
ciip.org.uk

The Canvey Island Independent Party (CIIP) is a local political party active on Canvey Island, in Essex, England.[2] It was established in 2004 by Labour councillor Dave Blackwell to campaign for a separate district council for Canvey Island.[3] With The People's Independent Party, they have formed the administration on Castle Point Borough Council since 2022.

History

Castle Point borough map with South Benfleet in the north in red and Canvey Island in the south in off-white. Inset shows all of Essex.

Canvey Island became a single civil parish in 1881, replacing 17 former divisions that had existed in broadly the same form since the Norman era.[4] In 1926, the parish was converted to the Canvey Island Urban District, which governed the island as a distinct entity. The urban district was dissolved along with the mainland Benfleet Urban District in the Local Government Act 1972 to form the local government district of Castle Point along with mainland Benfleet, Hadleigh, and Thundersley, ending Canvey Island's existence as a separate entity in local government.[4][5]

Blackwell was elected as a Labour councillor in 1995, but he felt restricted by national politics.[3] The Canvey Island Independents were established in 2004 to campaign for a return to Canvey Island's autonomy, which had been abolished 32 years previously. They argued that the current local government arrangements – which saw more councillors elected to the borough council from the mainland – were unfair to the residents of Canvey Island.[6][7] There are more seats outside Canvey, despite Canvey's population almost equalling the other districts, and in 2020 CIIP took a petition to Downing Street about this with over 10,000 signatures.[5] Local government reorganisation would require a request from the borough council and approval from the secretary of state.[3] They submitted plans for Castle Point to move from a cabinet to a committee system, which were rejected, and also campaigned for more power to be devolved to Canvey Island Town Council, a parish council subordinate to Castle Point, which is responsible for limited services and facilities on the island.[8] They have campaigned for a third road from Canvey to the mainland.[5] Issues fuelling support for CIIP include difficulty driving off the island, housing, and flooding and poor drainage, and feeling neglected by councillors based in mainland Benfleet.[9] Academic James Ker-Lindsay says such separatism movements stem from identity and a desire for decision-making at the right level.[3]

In 2019, CIIP opposed the Conservative administration's local plan to build 5,000 new homes in the borough.[10] CIIP favours devolution and did not take a position on the Local Government Reorganisation due for 2027.[11]

Election results

Since its formation the Canvey Island Independent Party has contested elections on a yearly basis, with representation at borough and county council level. It is also active at the parish level, with Canvey Island Independents sitting on Canvey Island Town Council.[12] It only stands in seats on Canvey and not South Benfleet.[13] The party does not contest Parliamentary elections.[13]

Borough Council elections

The Canvey Island Independents have been represented continuously on Castle Point Borough Council since their first election in 2004, first winning three seats, then five, eventually winning all but one of the Canvey seats by 2020.[5] They were consistently the second-largest group on the council, behind the ruling Conservatives until the 2022 elections, in which they came in first place after the Conservatives lost six seats.[14] In 2015, they formed an electoral pact with Ukip to form an administration after the elections if they together had more seats than the Conservatives. Ukip agreed not to stand in Canvey and CIIP supported Ukip's parliamentary candidate, local councillor and group leader Jamie Huntman.[13][15] In 2022, an increase in votes and seats for The People's Independent Party on Castle Point Borough Council saw the Conservatives lose power and a joint PIP and CIIP administration was formed, with Dave Blackwell elected leader of the council.[14][16][17] In 2024 CIIP won all 15 seats on Canvey, but lost a by-election to Reform in May 2025 following the death of Peter Grieg, part of a national trend of losses by independents to Reform.[18]

Year Councillors Control
2004[19]
6 / 41
 Conservative
2006[20]
11 / 41
 Conservative
2007[21]
15 / 41
 Conservative
2008[22]
15 / 41
 Conservative
2010[23]
16 / 41
 Conservative
2011[24]
16 / 41
 Conservative
2012[25]
15 / 41
 Conservative
2014[26]
16 / 41
 No overall control
2015
13 / 41
 Conservative
2016
14 / 41
 Conservative
2018
14 / 41
 Conservative
2019
16 / 41
 Conservative
2021
16 / 41
 Conservative
2022
16 / 41
 No overall control
2023[27]
16 / 41
 No overall control
2024[28]
15 / 39
 The People's Independent Party

County council elections

The Canvey Island Independents were represented on Essex County Council since the 2009 election, having failed to secure either seat on Canvey Island at the elections in 2005. They won both Canvey Island seats at the 2017 election, taking one from the Conservatives,[29] and retained them at the 2021 election, but lost them to Reform in May 2026.[30]

Year Castle Point
Councillors		 Control
2005
0 / 5
 Conservative
2009
1 / 5
 Conservative
2013
1 / 5
[31]		 Conservative
2017
2 / 5
 Conservative
2021
2 / 5
 Conservative
2026
0 / 5
 Reform

References

  1. ↑ "First Catalonia, next Canvey Island". The Times. 16 October 2017.
  2. ↑ "Canvey Island Independent Party". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Wilding, Mark (3 November 2017). "You've Never Heard of the Most Successful Independence Party in Britain". VICE. Retrieved 23 August 2024.
  4. 1 2 Robert Hallmann, "Essex History You Can See" (Tempus Publishing, 2006, ISBN 0 7524 3971 5)
  5. 1 2 3 4 Hawkins, Elliot (15 September 2020). "Canvey Island: The residents pushing for independence on Essex's 'forgotten' island". Essex Live.
  6. ↑ "Independence bid for Canvey 'is just political nonsense'". Basildon, Southend and Canvey Echo. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  7. ↑ Mann, George (25 October 2017). "Canvey Island: Residents on why they want independence". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
  8. ↑ "Canvey Island pushes ahead with Catalonia-style bid for independence". Independent. 16 October 2017. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  9. ↑ Hooper, Alasdair (21 November 2018). "Life on Canvey Island - the deprived Essex town striving for independence". Essex Live.
  10. ↑ Thomson, Charles (23 October 2019). "Castle Point approves 5,000-home Local Plan by majority to avoid Government intervention". Yellow Advertiser.
  11. ↑ Critchell, Matthew; Meyler, Piers (29 November 2024). "Secret Labour 'plans' to change Essex councils branded 'undemocratic' by local leaders". Essex Live.
  12. ↑ "Councillors Contact Details". Canvey Island Town Council. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  13. 1 2 3 "Canvey Island Independence Party back Ukip for election". Canvey Echo. 2 February 2015.
  14. 1 2 "Castle Point Borough Council: Tories lose control after nearly 20 years". BBC News. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
  15. ↑ Goodwin, Matthew (15 February 2015). "Inept response to Farage's Ukip could deal a blow to mainstream". Financial Times.
  16. ↑ "Your council-by-council guide to the local elections in the ITV Anglia region". ITV News. 19 April 2024.
  17. ↑ Berrill, Lewis (28 May 2022). "Castle Point's new council administration to scrap local plan". Basildon, Canvey & Southend Echo. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  18. ↑ Rallings, Colin; Thrasher, Michael (24 June 2025). "Turnover accelerating". Local Government First.
  19. ↑ "Castle Point : Council election results, June 10". Essex County Publications. NewsBank. 11 June 2004.
  20. ↑ "Local elections: Castle Point". BBC News Online. 4 May 2006. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  21. ↑ "Voting for us was a matter of trust". Essex County Publications. NewsBank. 7 May 2007.
  22. ↑ "Castle Point". BBC News Online. 2 May 2008. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  23. ↑ "Castle Point". BBC News Online. 7 May 2010. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  24. ↑ "England council elections". BBC News Online. 10 May 2011. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  25. ↑ "Councillors". Castle Point Borough Council. Archived from the original on 26 July 2012. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  26. ↑ "Castle Point". BBC News Online. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  27. ↑ "Castle Point result - Local Elections 2023". BBC News. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
  28. ↑ "Declaration of Result of Poll Borough Election - 2 May 2024". Castle Point. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  29. ↑ Feehan, Katie (5 May 2017). "Tories lose seat of former Councillor Ray Howard but eradicate UKIP from County Hall". Canvey Echo.
  30. ↑ https://cmis.essex.gov.uk/essexcmis5/Councillors/tabid/62/ScreenMode/Party/Default.aspx
  31. ↑ "UKIP and Greens take first Essex County Council seats". BBC News. 3 May 2013.
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