This evening at Christ Church in Carr Road, Nelson we shall be having the third hustings of the Campaign. It is hosted by Building Bridges and will kick off at 7.30pm.

Coming up fast on the inside track is Afzal Anwar, who has rocketed from 40/1 to 6/1 in the space of five days. People will be looking at him tonight to see if he can come close to Nick Clegg’s legendary performance last Thursday.

Incisive. Engaging. Relaxed and confident with a good line on anti-politics.

Question for Afzal Anwar. When do you want to get rid of the pound?

The firm favourite must remain Andrew Stephenson. After the last hustings I blogged that he put in a “solid performance”.

I have been reflecting on that assessment ever since. I think he is a bit buttoned up. Too controlled. He follows the Conservative Central Office script without hesitation, deviation or repetition.

I think he ought to chill out. Loosen your tie, Andrew. Take off your jacket. Show some passion about the things you really care about. Tell us about gay rights. The property market. Your visit to the Tufty Club in Colne. Anything that shows you are more than Ashcroft’s representative in Pendle.

Question for Andrew Stephenson.  What has the poor old fox ever done to you? Why do you want to repeal the Hunting Act that I fought so hard for?

Graham Cannon is the man from UKIP. Unlike Afzal Anwar, the Euro enthusiast, Graham is sceptical of the value of anything coming from continental Europe. Unless it is a high speed train. He told the last hustings that France got it right when it comes to high speed rail. He also knows a lot about soils and carbon capture.

James Jackman from the BNP is a completely unknown quantity. He may be erudition personified. But I rather doubt it.

This will be the first time in my life that I have shared a platform with a member of the BNP.  Not a nice feeling.