LABOUR leader Ed Miliband was full of praise for Ipswich today as he visited the town to launch his party’s local election campaign.

He described the town as “A fabulous place that people love to live in,” during a question and answer session with local activists.

He followed this with a walkabout through the town centre during which he met members of the public concerned about everything from benefit changes to the UFO sighting near Orford!

Mr Miliband kicked off his party’s county council election campaign in Ipswich – outlining proposals to give local authorities more powers to regulate High Street businesses.

He is particularly concerned about the growth in the number of payday loan shops, pawnbrokers, and bookmakers on the high street.

He said: “One of the fastest growing businesses on the high street are the payday lenders, sometimes charging extortionate rates of interest.

“In hard times, it is no wonder people turn to them. But often they just engulf people in debts that they cannot pay.

“Too many councils are finding that they don’t have the real power to stand up for local people.

“But that is what politics is supposed to be about: standing up for those without power and giving power to them.”

After his meeting at the Co-op Education Centre in Fore Street, Mr Miliband went on a walk throught the town centre meeting shoppers and discussing his party’s policies.

Most of his encounters were very friendly – but he avoided one heckler who demanded that he set up an inquiry to get to the truth of UFO sightings at Orford in the early 1980s.