Arch Brexiteer Nigel Farage hopes to gather support for his new Brexit Party when he hosts a rally in Huddersfield this evening. The MEP and former UKIP leader is talking at John Smith's Stadium to promote the party in the EU elections on May 23. The initial run of 440 tickets – priced £2.50 – sold out. Mr Farage is hoping to make waves in Kirklees which voted 54.7% in favour of leaving the European Union but is represented by pro-EU Labour MPs. A controversial figure with a cult following, Mr Farage is credited with forcing former Prime Minister David Cameron into calling an in-out referendum on Europe. The UK was supposed to leave the EU on March 29 but the UK's membership has been extended until October 31 while Prime Minister Theresa May attempts to steer an EU exit deal through Parliament. Our reporter Robert Sutcliffe will be hoping to grab an interview with the influential right-winger. Follow us below for all the latest from this evening's hot ticket rally.<doc-sep>Get the latest Huddersfield news and updates delivered straight to your inbox - sign up for free email updates Invalid Email Something went wrong, please try again later. Subscribe Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice News that the Brexit Party will host a political rally at the John Smith's Stadium ahead of the European Elections on May 23, has got the town talking. Nigel Farage is scheduled to make an appearance in the middle of Barry Sheerman's Labour constituency on Monday, in a bid to persuade voters to back the new party at the polls ten days later. All 440 tickets have sold out within a matter of hours and organisers are looking at putting on an extra 60 tickets for disappointed fans. The Brexit Party is hoping to gain seats in the European Parliament in an attempt to influence the negotiations for Britain's proposed exit from the European Union. It would also no doubt field dozens of candidates if a General Election was called and is visiting pro-Brexit areas to try and gain support. Mr Sheerman told ExaminerLive that he was still a "committed Remainer". He said: "I don't approve of Farage and I don't approve of his views. "He's not just targeting Huddesfield, he's going to a number of towns, but I hope people will see through him." He added: "All the evidence shows my constituents will be poorer outside the E.U. "I didn't get elected to give people fake news. "Many people will be be 17 to 20% worse off if we leave." Much like Brexit itself, opinions on Mr Farage's plan to come to Huddersfield and charge supporters £2.50 to get in , were divided. On Facebook there were plenty of milkshake jokes. In recent weeks far right activists Tommy Robinson was doused in milkshake twice by angry objectors to his views. Oli 'Freddy' Burbidge said: "Ticket: £2:50. Chocolate milkshake: £3:50. Seeing Nigel Farage covered in runny brown mess? Priceless." Barry Russell said: "Someone tell McDonalds so they can stock up on milkshakes..." Jan Balicki said: "I must polish my milk shake cannon." But David Rowan said: "A lot of people on here doing anything but work... and want to throw milkshakes mmmm thats why he's getting my vote." Musarat Ali said: "Oh dear I’m going to be busy giving my cats a manicure and pedicure. They booked ages ago and I can’t let them down!" Howie Russell said: "I will be too busy poking my eyes with mucky sticks." Donna Hall said: "Sorry...I'm shampooing my goldfish." And Carlos Flowerday said: "This will be a real hotbed of chaps with those ruddy "impending heart attack" faces, and misspelled placards." But Mr Farage also had support, with others saying he would be our next prime minister, and saying they would vote for him. Writing on ExaminerLive's website, BobAdams3000 said: "That (unmentionable) person should stay home. "I'm a very calm person, but the outright contradiction and mistruths stick to the this charlatan like dirt on a shovel. "He has his European passport and a very handsome pension from the institution that he claims to despise. "The new EU financial reporting rules are a major reason why the rich pushed every button (including bare-faced lies), to keep their massive holdings private." (Image: Gareth Fuller/PA Wire) SluggySmith commented: "£2.50 lol. Not hard to see why Mr F is coming to Huddersfield. For someone who hates Europe he makes a very healthy living from it. "There truly is one born every minute!" Tates said: "By scaring Cameron into a referendum this man is solely responsible for the whole Brexit debacle. "He has popped up again just in time to de-rail any possibility of a solution to the sorry mess he has caused. He has done more damage to the nation's economy than May and Corbyn put together." HymieG said: "Farage has no intention (nor policies) to improve life for the vast majority of British people. "Farage wants to create a deregulated, disaster capitalist killing ground in which he (and his public school chums) can make themselves even richer. "Farage knows that this could never be achieved within the EU, hence his (and Rees-Mogg, Johnson, Raab et al) obsession with leaving the EU. "Sad how so many British people are being conned by Farage. Gullible people, in the words of the Housemartins: "...it is sheep we are up against!" But supporters of Mr Farage were also vocal. Andrew Brennan commented: "Already voted for the Brexit Party with my postal vote. "We live in a town that voted leave but have an MP that just ignores his constituents and a House of Commons where MPs are trying to reverse the democratic process because they didn't like the outcome. An ExaminerLive member named, part4d, said: "He isn’t afraid to stand up against the so-called big boys in Brussels, unlike Mrs “weak-and-wobbly”. The comical line of “I’ll be a bloody difficult woman” ha ha ha. Yes she’s difficult all right - difficult to get rid of! talent1982 posted: "Whatever your thoughts are about him at least he is backing Brexit which is more than our illustrious MP Mr Sherman."<doc-sep>Don't miss any of Edinburgh Live's biggest stories - sign up to our daily email newsletter Invalid Email Something went wrong, please try again later. Sign me up now Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Anti-racism demonstrators are planning a protest against a rally of Nigel Farage's Brexit Party in the capital on Friday. The MEP announced yesterday that he was "heading to Edinburgh" for an event in the Corn Exchange. He's expected to address supporters ahead of the European elections on May 23. Stand Up To Racism Edinburgh have organised a demonstration outside the venue on New Market Road, starting at 6.30pm. In May 2013, Farage was forced to flee a Royal Mile pub in a police van after he was mobbed by protestors. Dozens of people surrounded him shouting he was a "racist", "fascist" and "homophobe" outside the Canon's Gate. Stand up to Racism organised a march against the far-right SDL in Edinburgh during March. They said: "On Friday, 17 May Stand up to Racism Edinburgh is organising a protest against racist Nigel Farage who is speaking in Edinburgh at the Corn Exchange on Friday evening. We will be meeting outside the Corn Exchange, 10 New Market Road, EH14 1RJ at 6.30pm. "Whether you voted 'Leave' or 'Remain' help us keep racism out of the Euro Elections and show Farage his racism is not welcome." Further details of the protest can be found here. To receive one WhatsApp message a day with Edinburgh Live's headlines, as well as breaking news alerts, text NEWS to 07899067815. Then add the number to your contacts as 'Edinburgh Live'. For more stories from across the Edinburgh area like our Facebook page , or follow us on Twitter and Instagram . You can also subscribe to our newsletter: enter your email in the blue box at the top of this article.<doc-sep>Brexit was voted for but hasn’t happened. Britain’s ruling Conservative government has failed to deliver it. The Labour opposition can’t agree on whether it wants it or not. Parliament is deadlocked. The political vacuum has been happily filled by a familiar face who played a major role in bringing about the EU referendum in 2016, and the outcome. Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party has been surging ahead in opinion polls in the run-up to the European Parliament elections. This is despite the fact that the party is only weeks old and has no detailed policies. It’s thought a successful result for the new party could push Britain’s ruling Conservative government to pursue a harder Brexit. The UK is now due to leave the EU on October 31. Farage’s objectives go beyond getting the UK out of the EU. The veteran Eurosceptic now says he also wants “to change politics for good.” What explains the Brexit Party’s appeal? REUTERS/Hannah McKay The European vote has given Nigel Farage a perfect opportunity to tap into widespread public anger at the Brexit delay and the parliamentary paralysis. Nearly three years after the referendum, these are the elections the UK was not expected to fight. Amid the political turmoil, public opinion has polarised still further. Just as pro-EU supporters have been emboldened in their opposition to Brexit, anti-EU and English nationalist sentiment has hardened too. Farage has successfully established clear blue water between his new movement and the UK Independence Party he once led. Since he left, UKIP has had several leaders and has openly flirted with the far-right. In contrast, Brexit Party enthusiasts highlight the diversity of its candidates, who include people from a variety of ethnic, social and political backgrounds. But there is little doubt that for many people, much of its appeal is down to the charisma of its leader and his message. Despite the anger and frustration, Brexit Party events have been rather joyous, festive occasions. Halls and stadiums have been packed. People attending have said they feel “let down” by the two main parties, “sick” of being misrepresented by “remainers”, and that the failure to implement the Brexit vote is “threatening democracy”. Both the main parties are feeling the heat, suffering badly in recent local elections. A survey of Conservative Party members found 60 percent were planning to vote for Brexit Party candidates at the European ballot. The Labour opposition’s ambiguous stance on Brexit has dented its appeal to voters on both sides of the divide. Many at the rallies, but by no means all, are middle-aged or older – while the Brexit Party is forecast to do well in more affluent districts as well as working-class areas, particularly in England. It attracts support from both the right and left. Audiences in traditional Labour strongholds have warmly applauded Ann Widdecombe, a Brexit Party convert who made her career on the right of the Conservative Party. READ: Support for new Brexit Party surges amid voter backlash READ: Brexit Guide: where are we now? What is the Brexit Party’s plan? Anti-Brexit protester stands next to Brexit Party campaign placards. REUTERS/Toby Melville Where in the past political parties have been pilloried for vagueness, Nigel Farage has made a virtue of his lack of a detailed programme. The Brexit Party has no manifesto, he says, because “manifesto equals lie”. “We will talk about all those things after the 23 May,” he said recently. “Right now… we are fighting and campaigning to make sure that we can be a free, independent, self-governing, democratic nation.” The European Union is no longer even his main theme. In a Brexit Party election broadcast, the EU isn’t even mentioned until towards the end. Instead, candidates describe how they feel “betrayed” and “humiliated” by politicians, leaving democracy “under threat”. “Our task and our mission is to change politics for good, to change all aspects of politics in this country,” Farage told the campaign launch. So far there are few details of what that means. Polls suggest that many who voted to leave the EU have been increasingly lured by a “no deal” Brexit – a departure without any agreement on the withdrawal terms or future relations. Its advocates have increasingly pushed for a clear break from the EU to trade on World Trade Organisation (WTO) terms. “The only way we can deliver the democratic will of the people is to leave on WTO terms,” Farage told the BBC. “Once we do that, the European Union will be banging our door down to have a sensible, tariff-free deal.” The UK could leave the EU and then negotiate new arrangements afterwards, he said in a recent TV interview. Farage’s claim that he argued for a no deal Brexit before the EU referendum is disputed. What would ‘leaving on WTO terms’ mean? Pro-Brexit economists and politicians argue that as most global trade is done on WTO terms, the UK could open up to the world while still maintaining access to EU markets. The counter-argument – expressed by many other economists, business groups and politicians – is that a “no deal” Brexit would be an act of reckless folly, causing immediate disruption and damaging the economy. They contest Farage’s claim that the EU would quickly strike a free-trade deal with the UK. The British government says the EU would treat the UK as “a third country”. The EU is the UK’s largest trading partner. By quitting the single market and customs union, Britain would be free to implement its own trade policy. But in the absence of a deal with the EU it would also face new barriers such as tariffs and regulations. Dozens of EU trade agreements with non-EU countries would no longer apply to the UK. Analysts and British economic sectors reliant on close, smooth arrangements with Europe have warned that being forced to adapt to new rules overnight brings dangers. Among those sounding alarm bells are manufacturing industries – including the car, food, chemicals and pharmaceuticals – as well as the health service, tourism, and financial services.<doc-sep>
Nigel Farage has announced he's coming to Edinburgh for a rally of his Brexit Party this Friday. The MEP is expected to return to the capital for an event at the Corn Exchange at 7pm. Supporters have been invited to "join the Brexiteer fightback" at the rally, which is ticketed at £2.50. The former UKIP leader was famously met with a huge protest when he appeared at a Royal Mile pub in May 2013. He had to be taken away in a police van after dozens of demonstrators crowded him outside an event at the Canon's Gait, shouting he was a "racist, fascist" and "homophobe." Farage has been touring the UK ahead of European elections on May 23. On Wednesday, he appeared in Cardiff where he discussed plans for form a Brexit Party group in the Welsh Assembly. He tweeted that he'd be "heading to Edinburgh" on Friday. Twitter users were keen to point out the 2013 incident to the MEP, with one saying: "Wasn’t you forced to hide in a pub last time you went there? British like traditions...." Another said: "Remember that time you hid like a scared kid in a pub and needed a police escort to leave a Scottish city?" The visit comes after the Brexit Party's first election leaflets sparked strong reactions in and around Edinburgh, which recorded a 74% Remain vote in the EU referendum. To receive one WhatsApp message a day with Edinburgh Live's headlines, as well as breaking news alerts, text NEWS to 07899067815. Then add the number to your contacts as 'Edinburgh Live'. For more stories from across the Edinburgh area like our Facebook page , or follow us on Twitter and Instagram . You can also subscribe to our newsletter: enter your email in the blue box at the top of this article.