‘This loopy idea’ an analysis of UKIP’s social media discourse in relation to rurality and climate change

Nationalist ideology, rightwing populism, and public views about climate change in Europe

“…Furthermore, when an issue is abstract and politically polarized, as is climate change, political allegiances and partisan cues are especially important (Guisinger andSaunders 2017, Tesler 2018). Given that RWP parties and politicians often display skepticism about climate change and oppose climate policy (Forchtner and Kølvraa 2015, Reed 2016, Schaller and Carius 2019, Lockwood 2018, the views expressed by RWP politicians and party platforms are very likely to influence RWP voters' beliefs and preferences. Hence, in addition to the effects of nationalist ideology, support (via voting) for RWP parties is likely to be related to climate change skepticism and opposition to mitigation policies.…”

UK: Between Managed Moderation and Far-Right Conspiracy Theories

“…Banking on voters' understanding that leaving the EU would increase the possibility of restricting immigration, UKIP, as the only party openly advocating exit from the EU, could therefore credibly signal that they mean business (Rekawek, 2015;Bale, 2018). Nigel Farage's appeal to voters was straightforwardly rightwing populist, anti-establishment, nativist, neo-nostalgic, and neo-traditionalist (Ford and Goodwin, 2014;Reed, 2016;Breeze, 2019). For most of its existence so far, UKIP never really took off in the polls.…”

Brexit and the Politics of the Rural

“…Thereafter it had widened its remit to accommodate a set of ‘feelings and experiences … embedded in recent British experience for particular groups, especially older, white English men’. Blending elements of Euroscepticism, Conservatism and populism, UKIP was able to tap into a sense of Englishness ‘framed nostalgically’ around an empire‐era England rooted in ‘rural landscapes’ as ‘the ethnic homelands of the English’ (Reed , p. 228).…”

“…One policy issue that proved fruitful for UKIP was opposition to renewable energy, particularly windfarms, in rural areas. This provided a platform for UKIP to articulate a position combining climate change scepticism and contempt for ‘political correctness’; while presenting themselves as stalwart defenders of traditional rural landscapes complete with hunting parties and village pubs (Reed , p. 237). As wind power proved an increasingly toxic issue for Conservative‐led rural councils, under its charismatic leader Nigel Farage, UKIP positioned itself as the party that spoke the language of the traditional Conservative voter, as demonstrated by a ‘UKIP surge’ in the polls after the 2010 election (Tournier‐Sol ).…”