MEP Nigel Farage: 'Use Princes Risborough Royal British Legion Hall or lose it' (From Bucks Free Press)

MEP Nigel Farage: 'Use Princes Risborough Royal British Legion Hall or lose it'

8:00am Thursday 11th March 2010 in

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TOWNSFOLK should use the Princes Risborough Royal British Legion Hall more often or “lose it”, controversial MEP Nigel Farage has warned.

Former UKIP leader Mr Farage, who is vying to become Risborough's next Westminster MP, spoke to residents at the venue in Bell Street on Saturday.

The hall faces possible closure at the end of March.

Speaking after the question and answer session with residents, Mr Farage told the Free Press he did not want to enter into a debate about the legion's rules on spending but said members of the community need to make better use of it.

He said the place was “magnificent, absolutely first class” and “this town would be sadder without it.”

Mr Farage, one of Buckinghamshire's represenativies in the European Parliament, said: “I would urge people in the area for goodness sake use the place. Use it or lose it. It’s funny, everyone feels it and yet they probably don’t use it as much as they should do.

“It’s rather like the butchers in Haddenham said to me when it was snowing. He said they all think we’re a lifeline but the rest of the year they shop somewhere else.”

Mr Farage said householders are perplexed by the boundary changes that mean Risborough is now part of the Buckingham constituency, where House of Commons Speaker John Bercow is the incumbent.

“They are totally confused about why they’ve been taken out of Aylesbury and chucked into Buckingham, we had it on the doorsteps all morning,” he said.

“There doesn’t seem to have been sufficient information about it.”

Former Lib Dem John Stevens is also contesting the seat, along with Patrick Phillips and Geoff Howard.

The change means Aylesbury MP David Lidington will no longer be Risborough's representative.

Mr Farage has hit the headlines in recent weeks with his tirade in the European Parliament against the EU's first president Herman Van Rompuy.

He has landed a £3,000 fine after branding him a “damp rag”.

Audience members on BBC 1's Question Time strongly criticised Mr Farage for the remarks but he does not regret the outburst.

He said: “I’ve never had an audience so completely against me from day one and I don’t think that little section of the community in Cardiff was represenative of the UK or of Cardiff either.

“I’ve done one or two radio shows where presenters said what the hell was going on there?Because actually the response to my Van Rompuy speech is overwhelmingly positive.”

Mr Farage also told the Free Press that UKIP should be represented on at least one of the three upcoming televised leadership debates featuring Prime Minister Gordon Brown, Tory leader David Cameron and Lib Dem Nick Clegg.

He said there is a danger by the third debate “people get bored” and fears it could degenerate into a personality contest or “who's got the cleanest teeth”.