A PROSPECTIVE parliamentary candidate has been selected by UKIP to stand for William Hague's Richmond constituency.

UKIP Richmond Constituency Association has announced local entrepreneur and accountant Matthew Cooke as its contender for the Westminster seat in May's election.

Mr Cooke, 41, a married father-of-two, said he was delighted to be taking on the challenge of standing for UKIP in what has been considered a safe Conservative constituency.

He said: “I am honoured and delighted that the UKIP Richmond Constituency Association have placed their trust in me.

“The challenges that come with fighting a traditionally safe seat like Richmond will be many, but I have never shrunk from a contest and look forward to the coming campaign.

“I am committed to working hard to win this seat and to show people what I could do for them as a sitting UKIP MP.”

“For too long the voters of this constituency have been taken for granted by a Tory party that has lost touch with it grassroots voters and core values, which is why I joined UKIP three years ago.”

Mr Cooke said he believed the key issues locally and nationally were the economy, rural affairs, military spending and local services – all of which would feature heavily in his campaign.

He added: “I realised the Conservative Party had abandoned the “working class Conservative” and the true conservative principles of small government, low taxes, a strong military and good financial housekeeping.”

Also in the running for the May election are Conservative Rishi Sunak, Liberal Democrat Chris Foote-Wood, Labour’s Mike Hill, and independents John Blackie and Robin Scott.