Nigel Farage has headed out to the US for the second time since he became an MP six weeks ago.
The Reform UK leader and newly-elected MP for Clacton is the keynote speaker at Saturdayās āKeep Arizona Free Summitā, and he has already been paid an upfront deposit of nearly Ā£12,000 for doing it.
Farage has defended his decision saying it was booked āover a year agoā and that āI am not the sort of person who lets people down otherwise you get a terrible reputationā.
But Jovan Owusu-Nepaul Labourās parliamentary candidate for Clacton in last monthās election, said: āItās deeply frustrating and infuriating.
āWe spoke to many people on the doorstep, and it was clear that people wanted an active and dedicated MP. Whilst he claims record amounts of money, people are still struggling with their cost-of-living during holiday time, proving his commitment has always been to himself rather than those who sent him to serve.ā
Farage has already received a deposit of Ā£11,783.55 – around $15,000 – from the AZ Liberty Network, co-organisers of Saturdayās conference. He said that his MP’s register of interests āwill be updated with the final payment once the engagement has been fulfilledā.
He told The Mirror he has āabsolutely no ideaā how much the final fee will be and says his staff deal with the āadminā.
But he defended the decision to jet off once again to the US on Friday morning: āI have previous commitments, contracts I have signed, which I will honour, because I am not the sort of person who lets people down otherwise you get a terrible reputation.
āThey advertised the fact I was coming a long, long time ago. So, number one, I donāt breach things that I have previously agreed to. Number two, unlike everybody else I work seven days a week.ā
In the first register of interests of the new parliament,Ā Farage claimed his firstĀ Ā£32k all-expense paid trip to AmericaĀ was made to āsupport a friend who was almost killed and to represent Clacton on the world stageā in comments which have attracted derision.
Speaking to Oli Dugmore on LBC, one Clacton resident says while heās been representing Clacton at Trump rallies, his presence on the ground in Essex has been little to none.
Ali explained that despite writing to her MP twice, she hasnāt received āso much as an email backā.
āHeās just using usā¦ he doesnāt care at all.ā
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