Spink leaves Conservatives

Conservative MP Bob Spink has left the parliamentary party in a dispute over his constituency activists.

It was still unclear on Wednesday night whether Spink resigned from the party or whether the Tory whip was withdrawn from him first.

 

In a dramatic intervention in the Commons Spink said he had resigned the Conservative whip because the party had failed to deal with "serious criminal and other irregularities" in his constituency.

 

The Castle Point MP made the announcement while raising a point of order during a Commons debate on the Budget.

 

He said: "I have as of today resigned the Conservative Party whip because the Conservative Party has failed to deal with serious criminal and other irregularities in my constituency."

 

He did not explain what the irregularities were

 

In a statement, a Tory party spokesman said: "The chief whip of the Conservative Party, Patrick McLoughlin, has today withdrawn the whip from Robert Spink, MP for Castle Point, with immediate effect.

 

"His action comes after Mr Spink emailed his resignation to Mr McLoughlin yesterday and complained that the party has not done enough to protect him during efforts by his association to deselect him."

 

Spink said: "I have made very serious enemies. So it is not surprising that some senior members of the Conservative association executive have been working, yet again, to deselect me."

 

Saying he would stand as an independent Spink added: "This will allow me to take a more firm line in certain policy areas like being tough on crime and more robust on Europe."

 

An internal inquiry by a panel of three party figures, including former chief whip David Maclean, concluded early this year that there were insufficient grounds to uphold complaints brought by the MP against the association.

 

The question of Spink's reselection as the Conservative candidate to fight the next general election was due to be discussed again by the association's executive council on March 18.