Crawley council leader says Britain First can keep turning up in town - but will ‘get the same kind of Crawley welcome every time they do’

The far-right group twice dropped in on Crawley in July in an attempt to drum up support – but was met with vocal opposition.

In a question during his weekly online Q&A, Peter Lamb was asked what could be done to stop its members from ‘intimidating people’ should they come back.

Mr Lamb said: “People ultimately have a right to be present if that’s what they want to be.”

But he said he ‘couldn’t stand’ them, adding: “This is a town which has done really well in terms of actually surviving with a very diverse population.

“The most encouraging thing about all of this is that no one’s really been paying attention to them apart from the people who’ve made it very clear [they are not welcome].”

Britain First called the two July drop-ins a ‘well-received recruitment drive’ and claimed the vocal opposition shared on social media had been organised by Labour activists and anti-fascists.

Mr Lamb denied the folk who stood up to Paul Golding and his ilk were sent by Labour.

He said: “People are turning up and making it very clear that these people aren’t welcome here.

“And if that’s the voice of the town, I think it’s a very positive sign in terms of community development.”

Mr Lamb added: “Britain First can keep turning up all they want – they’re going to get the same kind of Crawley welcome every time they do.”