VIDEO ELECTION INTERVIEW: Robert Gillespie (UKIP), Morecambe and Lunesdale

Mr Gillespie says Morecambe should be separate from Lancaster.

He said that if he was to become MP he would want Morecambe Town Council – not Lancaster City Council – to spend government money on Morecambe.

“The Morecambe people do not want to be linked to Lancaster. any more,” said Mr Gillespie.

“The people have told me it’s because the money comes into county, it gets dispersed to local councils, it comes to Lancaster, they put it into their area first, and then what’s left comes to the scrapings of Morecambe. Morecambe people want to leave Lancaster and be an independent town in their own right.”

Mr Gillespie, a coach driver who lives in Heysham, said he wanted to “bring investment back to Morecambe”, wants more social housing in the town, better welfare for the elderly and free on-street parking in the town centre.

He also said he believed Prime Minister Theresa May would try to “backslide” out of Brexit and said Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron “didn’t know the meaning of the word ‘democracy’” because he backed a second referendum on European Union membership.

The UKIP candidate was also asked for his views on his party’s policies on immigration and banning people from wearing facial coverings such as the burqa in public places.

Mr Gillespie also said: “We’re not saying we’re going to win this election, we want MPs in place to make the other parties accountable.”

See our website for interviews with the other Morecambe and Lunesdale candidates David Morris (Conservative), Matt Severn (Lib Dem), Vikki Singleton (Labour) and Cait Sinclair (Green).

*This interview was conducted on May 19.