A man who was set to stand as a Conservative candidate in the Oldham local elections has been suspended by the party.

Karl Bardsley is standing in the Chadderton South ward in the elections on May 2, however, he will now have to do so as an Independent candidate while an investigation takes place.

According to a report by the Mirror, Mr Bardsley's name appeared on a leaked list of BNP members from 2009, which included more than 12,500 names.

On the Wikileaks site, a Karl Bardsley with an Oldham address appeared on a list of members under 'lapsed December 2006' which was released in April, 2009.

A Conservative Party spokesman said: "Mr Karl Bardsley has been suspended pending investigation. The Conservative Party has a robust complaints process in place.

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"This process is rightly a confidential one, so that complainants can come forward in confidence. There is no place for extremism in the Conservative Party."

Mr Bardsley stood as a Conservative candidate in the Chadderton North ward last year, earning 1,076 votes but losing out to councillors Barabara Bronwridge, Colin McLaren and Eddie Moores.

The Oldham Times approached Mr Bardsley for comment via X, formerly known as Twitter, however his account has since been taken down.