On the European elections campaign trail, leader of the Brexit Party and eternal ballot box botherer Nigel Farage decided to visit the Welsh town of Merthyr Tydfil.
The only problem was, he clearly had no idea how his party’s main pitch – uh, Brexit – would benefit the town at all.
Repeatedly asked by a BBC reporter what the benefits for residents would be, Farage was reduced to nothing but the grinning pinstripe he really is – at one point saying something vague about steelworks in an entirely different part of Wales.
Here’s the exchange:
“Mr Farage, towns like Merthyr have received millions of pounds of regeneration money…”
“Yes.”
“This whole town centre has been funded by EU grant aid. What will Brexit offer them?”
“Let’s be honest about it, it’s not EU money. That’s one of the great sort of myths and pretensions.”
“But Wales as a whole is a net beneficiary to the tune of £250 million pounds a year. What will Brexit offer?”
“We have so far, over the course of the last few decades given away hundreds of billions…”
“But not in Wales, Wales has been a net beneficiary, Mr Farage, address that point.”
“Well the Welsh steel industry certainly hasn’t been a net beneficiary, absolutely not…”
“Agriculture, towns like these valleys have been regenerated using EU grant aid. What will Brexit offer?”
“Well, if you’re right about that, why aren’t people better off?”
“But what will Brexit offer?”
“Well, it’ll offer opportunities.”
“Such as?”
“Well, for example, the steel industry, we’ll be in charge of the steel industry.”
“That’s in Port Talbot, that’s 40 miles away from Merthyr.”
“That is Wales isn’t it?”
“South Wales though. Towns like the South Wales valleys.”
“Oh sorry, I do apologise.”
Watch it here:
Watch as @jonesarwyn repeatedly asks @Nigel_Farage what Brexit will offer people in Merthyr pic.twitter.com/4uSEhOwWT4
— BBC Wales News (@BBCWalesNews) May 16, 2019
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