Last August the British National Party gained their first seat on Kirklees Council when David Exley was elected for Heckmondwike in a council by-election. Please do not be too hard on the good folk of this town as the anti-BNP vote was evenly split three ways with a derisory amount for the Conservatives in fifth place.

Exley became the first BNP Councillor in Kirklees. Early in October at the public toilets in the same town, a man was the subject of a citizen's arrest and was charged with indecency between males in a public place. Evidently two other men escaped the scene of the incident. The individual concerned pleaded guilty and in December was sentenced to a nine month community rehabilitation order - what use to be called probation -and was ordered to pay £40 costs. The judge warned the individual that if he was caught again he would be looking at a prison sentence.

However Councillor Exley was disappointed with the sentence. He agreed with the judge that a prison sentence was not appropriate but that people who are caught in acts of this sort need some sort of treatment. He has therefore decided to 'name and shame' the individual concerned. He is intending to publish the individual's name address and photograph in the BNP newsletter which will be delivered to every household in the town.

Councillor Exley was quoted as saying 'Obviously we don't want people taking things into their own hands and making Mr X a victim. We want this to be a deterrent to others.'

Well frankly you could have fooled me. Though the individual does not live in Heckmondwike he does live in a neighbouring community. Exley's press release also gave an opportunity for the local paper to publish the man's personal details again. As well as the extreme personal distress of the individual concerned we are faced with the prospect of extreme homophobic material being delivered to every address in the town. It is probably not the time to go cottaging in Heckmondwike.

To lesbians and gay men in Yorkshire, the BNP may, up to now, have been a tasteless joke.

What has happened in one small community should make us very concerned. In June this year there are major local elections in West Yorkshire following boundary changes. The BNP have stated that they will be making a major push in the region and particularly in Calderdale, Kirklees and Bradford. Today it's Heckmondwike. Tomorrow it could be your community. Now is not the time for apathy. These people want you cured.