Jessica Lambert speaks to UKIP MEP Roger Helmer about ‘Britain’s single biggest issue
’ – immigration, and why he’s a supporter of the Better Off Out campaign.
Back in 2006, David Cameron stated that UKIP was full of “fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists.” It’s fair to say that until more recently, no one has paid much attention to the Eurosceptic party critics have likened to ‘the BNP in blazers’ – a claim UKIP strongly refute.
With their sudden popularity amongst some of the British public, are the tables finally starting to turn? Recent polls have demonstrated what the Westminster Elite have been aware of for some time – Ukip is on the rise! But why?
Roger Helmer, a Ukip MEP for the East Midlands region, stated: “We speak the language of normal people and we are in touch with the real issues amongst the British public.
“Immigration is the single biggest issue for ordinary people. It’s something the left won’t allow you to talk about and when we do, they all shout “racist, racist, racist!” It’s not racist at all. It’s what the British people want to talk about.
“We want to be able to control our borders and we want a cap on immigration. To favour the poor and unskilled while excluding the highly-qualified and capable, is to shoot ourselves in the foot.”
According to The Independent’s latest poll, Ukip has reached a new high of 16 per cent of the vote and now stands in third place. The news won’t have impressed Nick Clegg however, as Ukip have stormed ahead of the Lib Dems.
Ukip now matches the Tories in the voters’ eyes as the best party to handle immigration and the number of people who regard Ukip as a wasted vote has dropped from 57 per cent in May to 41 per cent.
A YouGov survey conducted earlier this year showed some 70 per cent of voters want immigration reduced or stopped completely and it revealed 67 per cent think British people should be given priority for jobs. It’s evident that immigration is a huge issue for the British public but it seems that the Westminster Big Cats have only just tuned in to what people are thinking – and saying!
Mr Helmer also has a lot to say regarding the £1.7 billion bill issued by Brussels a few weeks back.
“From a UK perspective it looks like daylight robbery. And it is. We are already paying a net £10 billion a year for the dubious privilege of membership of the EU… Yet EU membership arguably offers no net benefits to the UK,” he said.
Our EU membership is a controversial issue and remains at the forefront of politics in the lead up to the general election next May. It’s not likely that the charismatic Mr Farage will be leading the country post-election, however the parties success has certainly got politicians’ backs up, hasn’t it?
It appears there’s lots of disagreement amongst West Minsters leading parties but Ukip are clear and united regarding a certain issue… Immigration of course.
Mr Helmer, added: “What too few people realize is that the policy which the Coalition government operates at the moment, within the constraints of EU rules, is profoundly discriminatory. It discriminates against highly qualified applicants from Commonwealth countries in favour of EU citizens. I’d much rather have brain surgeons from India than less qualified ones from Europe.
It’s a question everyone has an answer to at the moment. If things could be done differently, how would the country tackle immigration? Do we apply filters, only allowing the best to enter ‘Great Britain’ or do we shut the borders altogether?
“It should work on a fair points system. The skilled would be a priority whilst the unskilled would be at the back of the queue. There would be no discrimination and migrates would be treated equally. It would be very similar to the border control adopted by Australia.
“How many times do we have to repeat – UKIP has nothing against foreigners. Nigel Farage is married to a German. What we oppose is uncontrolled immigration to the UK on a scale that puts undue pressure on social cohesion and infrastructure,” he stated.
And if things don’t turn out how Ukip would like, does Mr Helmer, a former member of the Conservative party, think David Cameron can deliver on his promises?
“He’s made a lot! Europe will not budge on ‘free movement’. The message is as it has always been. If you don’t like the destination, you have to get off the bus. It’s simple. We are either in or we are out.”
That’s an out from Helmer then!
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