ET phone…UKIP?

12.00.00am BST (GMT +0100) Mon 12th Jul 2010

A member of UKIP's political grouping in the European Parliament has called on the EU to establish a "European UFO centre", and is seeking the support of his colleagues.

Mario Borghezio MEP, a member of UKIP's European Freedom and Democracy group, has tabled a Written Declaration that will require the Commission to act if enough MEPs support it. It calls for the setting up of "a scientific centre for the analysis and dissemination of the scientific data" regarding the issue.

South West Lib Dem MEP Graham Watson thinks the whole saga is out of this world;

"Liberal Democrats have always supported greater transparency in the EU, but what can I say about this proposal? It is out of this world.

"MEPs voted on some very important issues this week- from cracking down on bankers' bonuses to ensuring the privacy of personal bank details- and to me, the only thing alien in Europe was UKIP's opposition to these measures.

"I understand the Declaration has the support of only a few MEPs, and I think it will stay that way. Most of Europe has its mind on getting the economy going again, and it's sad that UKIP's group has been sidetracked by little green men."

Watson also mused over the possible role of South West UKIP MEPs William Dartmouth and Trevor Colman in the campaign;

"I suppose the pair share some likeness with Mulder and Scully. Perhaps they will take up the extraterrestrial fight in the South West?"

Editors Notes

Full text of the Written Declaration can be viewed here; http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+WDECL+P7-DCL-2010-0057+0+DOC+WORD+V0//EN&language=EN

Mario Borghezio MEP is a member of the far-right Italian party Lega Nord, and has attracted controversy in the past after claiming that the Bilderberg group is a secret world government dating back to 1439 that controls the planet's economy. More seriously, he was convicted in 2005 for setting fire to the possessions of an immigrant in what was seen as a vigilante attack.