I’m a Brexiteer, and have been since before the Referendum in 2016. Along with that I’m a libertarian. Everyone knows what a Brexiteer is, but not so many know what it means to be a libertarian.

…civil rights, equality before the law, the right to self-defence, free speech…

Put simply, in modern political terms that means standing up for civil rights, equality before the law, the right to self-defence, free speech, freedom of association, freedom of conscience and free markets among other things. It’s about telling government to stop interfering in our lives so much. It means reducing taxes and giving people choice. It’s about fiscal responsibility and not ‘printing money’ (an inflation driving stealth tax on those least able to protect their spending power) to pay for power mongering. It means de-centralising power, and devolving it away from Westminster and closer to the people – by giving power to regions and communities to make and implement policy that works for them. It’s about realising that every person and every community is different and that centrally planned policy is actually damaging when in reality one size doesn’t fit all. It’s about recognising that the role of government is to defend the individual from having their rights violated (even when it’s people in government who want to violate your rights).

I want a proper Brexit, no selling out, no second referendum.

Some people may ask why I’m standing for Parliament. It’s simple, I want a proper Brexit, no selling out, no second referendum. And then I want to see libertarian principles being applied in the way the nation is governed. None of the main parties will do that. The Libertarian Party will.

Sure, I’m going against a well known Tory Brexiteer (Andrew Bridgen), but I’m un-persuaded to simply let him go uncontested on the Brexit front. Why? I don’t trust the Tories to deliver, they are using Brexit to convince the public to give them a strong majority, and then we are expected to trust that once they have power they will deliver a proper Brexit, but given the last three years we’ve no reason to trust they will, it’s a huge gamble. The only thing that will balance Tories in power to keep up pressure for a true Brexit are non-Tory Brexiteer MPs in Parliament. And that’s the one thing the Tories are trying to prevent. Ergo, this is not about Brexit, this is about Tories and power.

 I don’t trust the Tories to deliver, they are using Brexit to convince the public to give them a strong majority…

The Conservative Party approach to this election where the Brexit Party is concerned has been fairly despicable in my view. They have secured Brexit Tory seats without BXP competition, but refuse to stand away from Labour seats the BXP might win. They behave as if they own Brexit (they don’t) and are essentially trying to ride the back of it into power.

Perhaps that wouldn’t be so much of an issue if they could be trusted to deliver it (they can’t in my view) and if the only thing at stake was Brexit (that is the main one of course) but it’s not the only thing.

I’m standing because they will also want five years of power and policy making too, and that is looking to be about as un-libertarian as I’ve ever seen it with their abandonment of fiscal responsibility as they seek to purchase votes now with Santa like promises future tax payers will need to fund (I rub my eyes to check it really is Tories making all these spending pledges in the bidding war for votes – and not the Labour-lite party). They point at how it’ll be worse under Labour to deflect criticism but they are still leaving a mess for others to clean up.

In taking this approach Tories have revealed Fabian Socialist leanings, just as Labour has revealed Marxist ones. Between the two voters are left this election with a choice between centre-left and far-left, I’m standing because voters deserve a fiscally responsible choice.

I am your Brexit candidate in North West Leicestershire.

Finally, their insistence that this barely patched-up deal of Theresa May’s “is Brexit” is the clincher. I might dismiss such claims from Boris as spin, if it weren’t for the lip service being paid to it by the ‘Spartan’ ERG Tories. I’m standing because I don’t think they can really believe in their heart that this ‘deal’ “is Brexit”, but they stick with it anyway. It shows, in my view, that they will always put party first, even before Brexit.

I am your Brexit candidate in North West Leicestershire.