I WAS pleased when Nigel Farage decided to stand as an MP and leader of Reform, as the election so far has been a damp squib, and it needed someone to light a match to it.

Nigel has certainly done that to the concern of Labour and especially the Conservatives.

Nigel is the most charismatic of any of the leaders of the various parties and I admired him when he was an MEP, as mainly a lone voice, standing up to the corruption and the gravy train which is the EU.

He was the logical choice to lead the Brexit negotiations but Theresa May was never for Brexit.

If Nigel had been negotiating, there would have been a proper Brexit rather than the dog’s dinner we ended up with.

I was slightly disappointed with Nigel for at first saying he wasn’t standing and then he was, but to repeat he has certainly livened up, for me, the election.

I watched the debate between Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer.

The impression I got was, I could be wrong, they didn’t like each other.

I didn’t like the talking over each other, especially by Rishi, and I particularly didn’t like Keir Starmer saying this country would be regarded as a pariah if we tried to take our country back by ignoring some of the Human Rights Act.

This indicated to me he would re-join the EU if he could.

Thomas Ball, Barnard Castle.