I'm a fan of Nigel Farage. I think he's actually a nice guy. He connects with real people - which means, in my book at least, that he's 'real' himself. He's never far away (in interviews etc) from having a laugh about the situation he finds himself in.
It may all be a 'show' but I don't think anyone could keep up that persona as consistently as he does given the pressure he's been under, nor the negativity he's been surrounded by during the recent election campaign for very long if they didn't believe in what they were saying and if they weren't actually genuine about their views and consistent in terms of their personality.
If you were anti the EU (as I am) how would you have done things differently or better? He's had to shout loudly in order to make his voice heard at times when the MSM (Main Stream Media) would rather ignore what he's had to say. And then when they were finally forced by dint of public opinion to have to listen to what he'd been saying, they portray him as being extreme.
I think he's been shouting, long and loud about the EU and that he's been consistent about it. And consistently right about the fact that the EU is a disaster not just for the UK but for most countries - and most people - in Europe.
Without him we probably would not be looking forward to a referendum on our membership of the EU. He and his party have been setting the agenda on the EU and in particular immigration (which is by no means the biggest issue associated with our EU membership) for the last couple of years. This is a good thing, and whether you support or loathe him, Farage has been successful in getting the issue onto the agenda.
And, again whether you like or loathe him, this is a real achievement because, make no mistake, our membership of the EU is the single biggest issue we face as a nation today. And I am aware that it is not currently at the top of most people's lists of concerns, but it should be since it affects almost everything else.
Because the EU debate is essentially about whether we are free to elect people to represent us who will make laws affecting us all on a relatively local basis, or whether we hand over our democratic representation to people who have never heard of the village, town or city in which we live and who we cannot kick out if we disagree with them.
That way lies serfdom. And it amazes me that so many people support this scenario. Most I think because they simply do not understand what's at stake here.
However, while Nige has done a great job of getting the EU onto the public agenda, he is not the right person to lead the 'no' campaign in my opinion.
I'm not saying that he doesn't have an important role to play - he does - but I am saying that we need a leader for the 'out' campaign who is a bit more objective, reasoned and credible and who is considerably less divisive than Mr Farage.
The issue is, quite simply, much too important to be led by UKIP. There are simply too many people who will not vote for Brexit if they consider their vote s being one for UKIP as opposed to being for an independent, self-governing and 'free' future for the UK.
UKIP has (quite rightly given its success in the EU elections last year and its massively increased vote last week) focused on immigration as a key issue. And it is a key issue for the UK given the pressure that uncontrolled immigration is putting on our infrastructure and public services.
The other parties are now falling over themselves to try to address the issue after all. But UKIP is now closely associated with the immigration issue in many people's minds and many (usually those who aren't adversely affected by it) equate this stance with racism or 'Little Englander' unfairness. It is neither of those things but the feeling persists in many people's minds - and that is the problem as far as UKIP leading any Brexit campaign is concerned.
Being able to control our own borders as a sovereign nation is important - it means that we can plan our infrastructure to meet the needs of the entire population and UKIP is not anti immigrant, just anti the uncontrolled immigration that Labour didn't just 'allow' but actively encouraged.
But immigration is not even close to being the biggest issue when it comes to consideration of the merits or otherwise of our being in the EU. Much more important is our being able to govern ourselves, make and implement our own laws, have voters represented properly on a local basis, being able to make trade deals on our own behalf with the rest of the world and not via the EU's creaking, self interested machinery.
It's also about money. Taxpayer's money. Our taxes, paid in the UK should, first and foremost, be used for the benefit of the people who pay them - i.e. the UK population. If we remain in the expanding EU we will inevitably be paying to address the corruption and poverty of former eastern bloc countries and inefficient southern Europe whilst not being able to afford to pay for problems in our own society. And this is a scenario that will go on for decades, generations, perhaps hundreds of years. It will be a very long time in the future before we get any financial benefit from being in the same club as Albania, Bulgaria or even Italy or France.
So who do we need to lead the Brexit campaign? The truth is I don't know and whoever might take it on would have to do so in the knowledge that it would inevitably be something of a poisoned chalice. They would be attacked by the pro-EU media not just on the basis of their stance but everything else - private life, past indiscretions the whole gamut. It's not an enviable or attractive position to put oneself in.
On the other hand if you believe passionately in an independent future for the UK, that is a considerable driving force in my opinion.
I think it needs to be someone who is not associated with a political party (like UKIP, too divisive) and someone who has credibility in another field, preferably business. Someone who is liked and admired, good with the media, quietly spoken but assured.
Someone like James Dyson perhaps? Successful, no lover of the EU, liked, admired, credible in the business world. A global player rather than just a European businessman. The subliminal association with cleaning up the EU's mess would be good too!
But a massive risk for him.
Anyway, we'll see.
Thanks for reading.
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