49 NI people on leaked 'BNP list'

A list of BNP members' details was leaked

A document posted on the internet apparently listing thousands of British National Party members suggests it has at least 49 members in NI.

Names, addresses and telephone numbers are listed in the document.

Commenting on the latest apparent leak, BNP leader Nick Griffin said it was "a malicious forgery" which contained names of people with whom the BNP has had no contact.

It follows the leaking of a BNP membership list in November 2008.

That document listed 39 members in Northern Ireland including a serving soldier and a former police officer.

'Concoction'

A former party member was fined £200 by Nottingham magistrates in September after admitting publishing it.

Many of the people from Northern Ireland who were on the 2008 list are not on the latest list.

Earlier it was thought the new list did not include the details of Kieran Dinsmore, the party's regional organiser in Northern Ireland, however he is listed under the alternative name of Kieran Devlin.

The list suggests most of the BNP members in NI are concentrated in Belfast and Counties Antrim and Down.

Mr Griffin told the BNP's website on Tuesday: "We have had a chance to examine the list in detail and can unequivocally say that it is not a genuine BNP list.

"It is a concoction of the 'old' list plus a number of inquiries received, but, most disturbingly, it contains thousands of names of people with whom the BNP has had no contact whatsoever.

"The list includes thousands of people with renewal and membership numbers next to their names which are totally false and made up."

The list was posted on the WikiLeaks site. It was founded in 2006 by a group of dissidents and journalists and allows whistleblowers to anonymously post documents on the web.