The by-election caused by the resignation of disgraced Labour back-bencher Ian Gibson will be contested by Reverend Robert West for the British National Party, it has been confirmed.

Speaking to BNP News, Reverend West said he was delighted to take up the party’s banner once again after having been its lead candidate in the East Midlands Euro region, where he amassed an impressive 106,319 votes.

* Reverend West was guest of honour at this month’s Bracknell and Wokingham BNP group meeting, reports councillor Mark Burke, our South East correspondent.

“The reverend lost no time in developing his traditional themes of society and its present ills and what the party can and will do about it when in power,” Cllr Burke said.

“At a packed meeting the members were reminded of the many wrongs inflicted on a long-suffering UK and that if the people themselves did not react accordingly, then the country as a whole would suffer.”

A lively question and answer session followed his well-received speech and a good collection was taken. The meeting was filmed and a clip will be available shortly on the BNP TV website.

An in-depth interview with the Reverend West was also conducted the next day which will be the feature of the forthcoming FSID disk available in July, Cllr Burke added.