European migrant crisis: UKIP leadership hopeful Bill Etheridge heads into the Calais jungle

The West Midlands MEP, who is also a Sedgley councillor, spent a day walking deep into the jungle which is home to thousands of refugees and migrants.

He accused the French authorities of allowing the camp to form and of "shunting" the problem onto the UK.

He said: "I wanted to go out there and see what it is all about first-hand. It has been one of the icons of the immigration crisis within the European Union.

"There have also been increasing reports of lorry drivers being attacked with people trying to get to the UK.

"The French government have allowed the jungle to spring up. There are 9,000 people there who are not registered - nobody knows who they are.

"They have allowed that on the closest part of France to the UK. In my view they have positively encouraged it.

"In a hostile act towards the UK they have shunted the problem onto us. I hold the government there entirely responsible for what now exists."

Mr Etheridge spent Monday of this week exploring the refugee camp in the French port.

Thousands of UK-bound migrants live in rickety shacks made out of scraps of wood and plastic covers having often fled from war, poverty and persecution.

Mr Etheridge said conditions around the edge of the camp "are not awful" but rapidly deteriorated the further in he travelled.

He added: "The further you go in the more organised gangs are controlling things.

"Once you are deep into the camp the atmosphere changes and it becomes very hostile.

"We saw a tent where three children were living. They were aged eight, 10 and 12. They were living on their own.

"They had not protection and they were drinking from troughs of dirty water. It was pretty appalling."

Mr Etheridge is one of five contenders to replace Nigel Farage, along with Lisa Duffy, Elizabeth Jones, Diane James and Philip Broughton.