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UK Independence Party's online shop makes £80,000 in a year

The UK Independence Party has raised more than £80,000 in a year from the sale of branded merchandise including silk ties, jewellery and even hi-vis vests for construction workers from its online shop.

Its 2013 accounts, lodged with Companies House this month, showed that income from commercial activities more than doubled as the party broke through into the political mainstream, with membership increasing 60 per cent to 32,447 members.

Ukip's accounts also showed that donations to the party had reached £1.36m in the period to December 31, up from £0.51m the year previously.

For less financially flush supporters, purple and gold striped silk ties similar to those sported by Ukip's leader Nigel Farage are available on Ukip's website for £20. For "ladies", the same sum can secure a purple silk scarf with a repeat pattern of the party's logo.

High-vis vests emblazoned with the Ukip logo and slogan "Ukip at work" are being sold for £5, following the party's recent campaign which claimed construction workers were being priced out of the market by immigrant labour.

The website offers an array of purple and gold badges, posters and bumper stickers, plus golfing umbrellas, cloth carriers branded "The EU is not my bag" and jewellery made from "Cornish pewter".

Souvenir programmes from the party's 20th anniversary conference are marketed "As seen on TV" after disgraced party member Godfrey Bloom was caught on camera using a rolled-up copy to whack journalist Michael Crick on the head.

Despite Mr Bloom's previous remarks about the inability of some women to "clean behind the fridge", Ukip does not offer any fridge magnets in its product range.

This is in contrast with the main political parties, who all offer fridge magnets among their slightly more sanitised collections of party-branded merchandise and gifts.

Labour's online gift shop, which sells magnets bearing the party's logo for £2, is dominated by prints of historic campaign posters from the 1945 general election designed by Philip Zec, then the cartoonist at the Daily Mirror.

The Liberal Democrats' online shop offers supporters fridge magnets "personalised with the MP, MEP or MSP of your choice" for just 95p. However, large yellow banners of the party's logo, "suitable for outdoor use", have been reduced by £10 to £28.95.

The Conservative party's online store offers no fewer than 24 products relating to Margaret Thatcher in a section branded "Maggie", including babygros for girls bearing the slogan "Little Iron Lady" for £15. Other items include a tea towel with the slogan "We are all in this together" for £8.50.

None of the other political parties were able to break down the amounts raised from their online shops. The Labour party said it had made £3.37m from "commercial income" in the year to December 2012, but the vast majority of this related to stalls at party conferences.

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