Shrewsbury Ukip candidate Suzanne Evans defends 'two and a third' homes
Shrewsbury's Ukip candidate has defended having "two and a third" homes, insisting that immigration had played a bigger role in the housing crisis.
Suzanne Evans, also the party's deputy chairman and manifesto author, was asked at a press conference in Westminster how many properties she owns.
She replied: "I have two and a third homes. I have a flat in London, I have a flat in Shrewsbury and I have a share in a house that myself and my family bought for my daughter who is at university.
"I was deeply concerned about the huge amount of debt she was racking up as a student so I sold my one house in London and bought the others.
"My homes are both very modest and quite small really. I think immigration is the bigger issue."
As she unveiled the eurosceptic party's housing plans yesterday, she said: "Just about every MP in Westminster has two homes, one in London and one in the constituency. I'm no different to any MP."
She said she managed to run her homes on less than an MP's income and would not be claiming expenses on them.
She said the country is "desperate for housing", but added: "(There is) no mention of the fact that 600,000 people came to live in Britain last year, over 500,000 the year before that, almost half a million too before that, and back we go.
"It's ironic to think that some of those migrants may very well have been drawn to Britain because our land is so green and pleasant.
"Net immigration is now at an all-time high. If we want to have any countryside left for ourselves and others to enjoy, we have to stop uncontrolled immigration."
Ukip has pledged to prioritise bringing back into use around 300,000 empty properties in Britain and "incentivise" developers to build one million homes on brownfield sites by 2025.
Ms Evans said incentives would help end "the destruction of our precious greenbelt".
