Thursday, June 13, 2019

The Tiggers change their name again: Welcome to The Independent Group for Change

Embed from Getty Images

First it was The Independent Group. Then it was Change UK. Then it was Change UK - The Independent Group. Then it was ForChange_Now.

Today it became The Independent Group for Change.

The Tiggers, as I shall always think of them, have been forced into this latest change of name following complaints from the owners of the Change.org petition site.

They had hoped to register with the Electoral Commission as Change UK, but the Shropshire Star (who else?) explains that a statement from them sets out how:
Lawyers from Change.org disputed the group’s right to register as "Change UK" with the Electoral Commission ahead of the European elections. 
They explained how “under threat of legal action” by Change.org, which could have seen “each MP being sued personally” and with no time left to register a new party name, Change UK “felt we had no option but to sign a legal agreement” to ditch the name following the election. 
They added: “We are now legally obliged to make a formal application to the Electoral Commission, to amend our name by 15th June, so today we are applying to register ourselves as ‘The Independent Group for Change’ and will await the Electoral Commission’s decision.
This 'new party' business is harder than it looks.

No comments: