A POLITICAL conference is set to bring an economic boost to the town this weekend, according to a Weymouth councillor.

The UKIP south west regional conference 2017 is taking place at the Pavilion on Saturday – and the headline speaker will be party leader Paul Nuttall.

It is set to be Mr Nuttall’s first public appearance since losing a by-election in Stoke-on-Trent last week, said conference organiser Cllr Francis Drake.

Cllr Drake said 250 tickets have been sold, and the event will benefit traders who are struggling out of season.

It is the first time a political conference has been held in the resort, he added – but he hopes it won’t be the last.

He said: “It’s bound to benefit the town, bringing all these people in. We know a lot of people are coming to town for this conference, and they will want places to stay, and go out and eat in restaurants. I know some people are coming up Friday afternoon and staying for the weekend.

“It makes you realise how important it is to get events like this here. I’m a trader myself and I know how difficult it is out of season in the winter. Traders really suffer at this time of year. When the holidaymakers come they bring money in but at this time of year it’s very hard.”

Cllr Drake, who sits on Weymouth and Portland Borough Council and is the community safety briefholder, said it is ‘right’ that Mr Nuttall comes to speak at the event as party leader. He will be joined by a number of UKIP MEPs.

Mr Nuttall’s defeat in the by-election sparked in-fighting in the party, with major donor Arron Banks threatening to pull his funding unless he is made party chairman and former leader Nigel Farage embarking on a war of words with UKIP’s only MP Douglas Carswell.

UKIP deputy leader Peter Whittle said it may have been a mistake for Mr Nuttall to run for the party in Stoke so early in his leadership.

Cllr Drake said the topics he would like to see discussed at the conference include continuing to put pressure on the government to trigger Brexit by invoking Article 50, the creation of an English Assembly and the future of the National Health Service.

The conference will be held at Weymouth Pavilion on Saturday, from 10am to 5pm.