Former UKIP aide: 'David Coburn is Scotland's answer to Austin Powers'

The economics graduate claims Coburn doesn’t understand Scottish politics, underestimates MSPs and fails to properly prepare before media appearances.

READ MORE: Ukip in complete meltdown in Scotland ahead of Holyrood vote

The MSP’s spokesman dismissed the criticism which he described as “like a script for Fantasy Island”.

Malyn, who is the third placed candidate on UKIP’s West of Scotland regional list, worked at Coburn’s taxpayer-funded Edinburgh office.

He claims that his relationship with Coburn began to break down after he failed to back him over an internal complaint and was then further damaged when he told the MEP his performance in a televised leaders’ debate was “awful”.

Last week Malyn, whose contract was due for renewal, received a curt email from a junior member of Coburn’s staff informing him that his desk had been cleared and his belongings were in a box at reception.

But he insists he has not yet been formally told by either Coburn or his chief of staff, Arthur 'Misty' Thackeray, that he will no longer be employed as an aide to the MEP.

Malyn said: “The big problem I have is I tend to give honest feedback. I have been writing briefing papers for him but when he’s in the media and he hasn’t done so well – for example in the leaders’ debate in March when he got confused about health and welfare – I will say to him that is awful. That’s one issue.

“The other is that essentially an internal complaint was filed against a person who is now a candidate on one of the lists for some rather disgraceful behaviour and pressure was put on me not to back the complainant by both David Coburn and by Arthur Thackeray, which I disregarded.”

Malyn refused to discuss the complaint further in order to protect the identity of the parties involved but it is understood that it has not yet been resolved.

The former General Election candidate who stood in East Renfrewshire last year said working for Coburn was a thankless task.

READ MORE: Ukip in complete meltdown in Scotland ahead of Holyrood vote

He claims he was in the office in Edinburgh “three or four days a week” but some colleagues who are also paid from the public purse “were hardly ever seen there”.

He said: “He doesn’t really have any leadership skills. He certainly doesn’t have any management skills at all. He is somebody who is very, very erratic. He throws temper tantrums quite regularly, usually over nothing.

“If he makes a media appearance or gives a speech he will insist that it is put up on online immediately and sent out to membership even though sometimes the content is not very good.

“In March he gave an interview to a newspaper on a Thursday about education. The next day, at about 1pm, he gets on the phone to me and starts complaining that I hadn’t flagged up the article which he said was in the Herald, and I was told I was incompetent. I then went to get the Herald and couldn’t find the article. It later transpired that he had in fact spoken to the Sunday Herald and the article hadn’t yet been published. This is typical of what he would do.

“He tends to be very, very childish. When it comes to things like media appearances he is almost like the kid who wants to be on television. He doesn’t care what the content is.”

He compares Coburn – who wasn’t based in Scotland for three decades - to Austin Powers because the fictional character was cryogenically frozen for thirty years.

Malyn said: “The biggest problem he’s got is he doesn’t have any real knowledge of Scottish politics at all. When he was chosen as the lead candidate in the Euro elections I think he’d been away from Scotland for about thirty years. It’s a bit like Austin Powers – it’s as if he was frozen in the 1960s or 1970s and unfrozen thirty years later.

“When he goes on leaders’ debates or when he’s being interviewed he doesn’t spend enough time to prepare. Before the televised leaders’ debate in March I was supposed to turn up at a place in Glasgow at 1pm and brief him on some of the things he would be asked. He didn’t turn up until about 2.30pm because he decided to take a tour of the BBC building.

“I don’t think he’s able to really understand Scottish domestic politics partly as a result of him being away from Scotland for a very long time and also he puts himself at a serious disadvantage because he doesn’t spend enough time trying to overcome that problem.

“He has a lack of understanding that Scotland has a powerful parliament and competent, articulate people in that parliament. I think he underestimates that.”

Malyn insists he has no future in UKIP because he has now fallen out of favour with Coburn and will step down as a candidate and quit the party today.

He said: “The whole selection process has shown me that I don’t trust the management team of UKIP in Scotland – it is riddled with ridiculous amounts of favouritism and cronyism.

“But what’s become clear in the last month that the problem is not just the team in Scotland. Had the NEC been doing its job, had Nigel Farage been doing his job, this may not have happened.

“What it seems to be is a total disregard for those in the party who put in the legwork and do the stuff while those that just sit around collecting fake titles such as chairman or secretary of an inactive branch get all the rewards. So, there’s no point in being in the party.”

He added: “The problem with David Coburn is he doesn’t like sharing the limelight so he’s scared of anyone in the party who has ability. He fears competition.

“He will knock people who complain and say they’re disgruntled but there are an awful lot of disgruntled people in the party. A lot of people have quit recently and more will follow.”

A UKIP Scotland spokesman said Malyn’s claims “read like a script for Fantasy Island” and described his role in Coburn’s office as a “minor clerical researcher”.

The spokesman said Malyn was given a “second chance” after writing on Facebook that the idea of former Prime Minister John Major leading the UK team for a renegotiated deal with the European Union was “about as convincing as appointing Stephen Hawking as captain of the British Synchronised Swimming Team”.

READ MORE: Ukip in complete meltdown in Scotland ahead of Holyrood vote

“It would now appear that to soothe his ego over disappointment at failing to get a top spot on the regional list he is resorting to despicable attacks on fellow candidates, which decent minded people will treat with contempt,” added the spokesman.

“His contract has not been terminated, it expired on the date he has always known it would expire. On signing the contract, the expiration date was agreed to be shortly before the elections, just in case he is successful in his bid to become an MSP.”