Candidate wants to transform RAF Fairford (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

Candidate wants to transform RAF Fairford

WOULD be MP James Derieg has plans for the future of RAF Fairford, which are out of this world.

But the 42-year-old, who intends to stand as an Independent in the Cotswold constituency during next month's General Election, says that, unlike other politicians, his feet remain firmly on the ground.

American-born Mr Derieg, who lives in Kemble, is against US forces using Fairford as a base and wants to turn it into Europe's first spaceport.

The idea is one of several policies, which he hopes will capture the public's imagination in the run-up to May 5, including legalising cannabis to pay for public transport.

In relation to Fairford, he said: "I'm very much in favour of technological development and I can see that in the future we will be a space travelling species.

"RAF Fairford already has the infrastructure and I think it's time we got foreign forces out of the country."

Mr Derieg, who originates from Los Angeles but left America in 1983, has been a naturalised British citizen for four years.

He hit the headlines two years ago when he renounced his US citizenship and burned his American passport outside the gates of RAF Fairford in protest at the Iraq War.

Now, he has turned his attentions to full public service and has drawn up a manifesto, which is set to create plenty of controversy.

Mr Derieg wants take away 'unreasonable' Government targets and 'defensive paperwork' for public servants to enable them to spend more time carrying out their core professional duties.

The married father-of-two, who works as a project worker for the Gloucestershire Drug and Alcohol Service, also wants to see cannabis legalised to provide a new tax stream. The money would then be used to make public transport free.

He said: "Cannabis is less dangerous than cigarettes and alcohol.

"Alcohol itself poisons every organ in the body but no-one has been able to identify any negative physical effects for cannabis."

He added: "It would be so much more efficient if public transport had the task of transporting people from A to B.

"If you take away the payment mechanism, you'd get more people on the trains and buses would be more efficient."

Mr Derieg will hold informal talks and answer questions about his campaign in Cirencester's Brewery Courtyard, from noon until 3pm on Sunday.

He added: "Everyone is equal. I'll advocate on behalf of the Royal family as much as a drug addict."

* RAF Fairford is no stranger to space travel.

In 1983, some 40,000 looked on as the world-famous Space Shuttle Enterprise visited the base ahead of its maiden orbital flight.