THE far-right British National Party is fielding around 100 candidates across the North-East and North Yorkshire in the forthcoming local government elections. The BNP is a threat and it needs to be countered.

So what possessed the leader of the Liberal Democrat group on Darlington Borough Council to sign a nomination form for one of those BNP candidates?

Councillor Steve Jones has a good reputation as a local councillor and we do not believe that he put his name to Daniel Andrew Brown's nomination form in the knowledge that he was supporting a party with such repulsive policies.

But it is a huge mistake to make. Councillor Jones says he does not know Mr Brown, and that he signed the form without realising what he was doing, even though the form clearly states that Mr Brown is standing for the BNP.

Does Councillor Jones normally sign documents without reading them? If he really is that slapdash, it is right that his judgement is called into question.

He has sparked a national embarrassment for the Liberal Democrats who had no choice but to suspend him from the party while an inquiry is carried out.

And he has given his political opponents a glorious opportunity to go on the attack, just as the Lib Dems would have done if the shoe was on the other foot.

Whatever happens to Councillor Jones, we hope this unfortunate episode serves as a reminder that the BNP are out there in force.

And that is why every vote counts in the local elections on May 3.