HEREFORD MP Jesse Norman has been told to “stop fudging” and say which way he will be voting in the EU referendum.

The call has come from Paul Keetch who said his parliamentary successor’s repeated refusals to say whether he wants the UK to stay or leave Europe is “profoundly undemocratic”.

Mr Keetch, Hereford’s Liberal Democrat MP from 1997 to 2010, said politicians are paid to make difficult decisions. “I received death threats when I opposed the ban on fox hunting,” he said. “I had to have security but being open and accountable is part of parliamentary democracy.

“I never wanted to criticise or praise my successor but this is such an important issue – it’s the biggest decision facing the country in our lifetime.

“I don’t care if he is for or against, I just want him to publicly state which side he is on.”

Mr Keetch added: “His actions go against the whole principle of parliamentary democracy and he has a duty to tell his constituents where he stands.”

Mr Norman is currently hosting a number of debates around the county and – at the latest meeting in Ross-on-Wye on Saturday– was again asked which way he would be voting. However, just as when he was put on the spot in a live television interview with Channel Four’s Jon Snow, the MP refused to answer.

Mr Norman this week told the Hereford Times that while he “greatly likes” Mr Keetch, his predecessor is “entirely wrong about this issue”.

“Of course he and I as MPs have both had to take difficult decisions in Parliament,” he said.

“I myself got fired from the No 10 Policy Board for disagreeing with the Prime Minister over the vote on Syria in 2013, a decision of which I remain proud.

“But as he should know, a referendum is not a matter of representative democracy – it is a direct vote by the people. Every vote is a private one, and every vote counts the same. I am not being paid to exercise my vote on this, any more than him, or any other reader of the Hereford Times.”

Mr Norman added: “My constituents have made it quite clear to me that what they want above all is impartial information and independent advice about the EU referendum.

“This issue affects everyone in different ways, and they don’t want politicians shouting at them – they want to be able to make up their own minds.

“As a result, though I have a clear view on the matter, I am remaining publicly neutral.

“I have now had two of four planned public meetings on the EU Referendum. “They have been packed and very informative, and the feedback has been excellent. “My neutrality has allowed me to chair them in the interests of all those present, and it has been extremely popular with the audiences.

“Readers can find out more about the EU Referendum on my website jesse4hereford.com.”

This response was labelled a “fudge” by Mr Keetch who – just like Mr Norman’s county Conservative colleague Bill Wiggin – has given his backing to the Brexit campaign.

Explaining why he is in favour of pulling out – despite being in the largely pro-European Lib Dem party – Mr Keetch said the EU as an institution was broken.

“It is a body that has failed – just as the Soviet Union did and as the League of Nations did,” he said.

“I love Europe but you cannot go on supporting something that is broke, undemocratic and cannot control its borders.”