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UKIP's Roger Lord to challenge Douglas Carswell for Clacton Eurosceptic Tory MPs rule out further UKIP defections
(about 2 hours later)
A UKIP member says he will challenge Douglas Carswell to be the party's parliamentary candidate in Clacton, following the MP's defection from the Conservative Party. Eurosceptic Tory MPs have rallied round David Cameron after one of their number - Douglas Carswell - defected to UKIP.
Roger Lord says he was due to fight the Clacton seat at the general election before Mr Carswell's decision. Prominent backbenchers Peter Bone, Stewart Jackson and Nadine Dorries are among those to have ruled out a defection to Nigel Farage's party.
Mr Carswell resigned as the local MP on Thursday, sparking a by-election in which he intends to stand for UKIP. Mr Farage said further defections were likely if Mr Carswell won the by-election in his Clacton seat.
Should UKIP win the by-election, it would be the party's first elected MP. But Tory former Cabinet minister John Redwood said this was "a figment of UKIP's imagination".
Meanwhile, UKIP leader Nigel Farage says some other Tory and Labour backbenchers "support UKIP fully" and could also join the party. Mr Carswell decided to stand down as an MP - rather than sitting in the Commons under a UKIP banner until next year's general election - triggering a by-election in his Essex constituency.
He is due to visit Mr Carswell's Clacton constituency later with the MP. If he wins the vote, which is not expected to take place before early October, Mr Carswell would become UKIP's first elected MP, giving the party a long-awaited platform at Westminster to push for Britain's exit from the EU.
After Mr Carswell took Westminster by surprise on Thursday, reports suggested as many as eight more MPs could follow suit. His surprise move has prompted speculation about the number of other Tories who could also jump ship, with the The Daily Mail speculating that as many as eight were in talks with UKIP about defection.
The maverick backbencher had been unhappy with Prime Minister David Cameron's stance over Europe and his shelving of plans to allow the removal of errant MPs between elections. 'No roll-out'
UKIP MEP Patrick O'Flynn told the BBC's Newsnight there "may well be other Conservative MPs" in the same position. Mr Farage, who is visiting Mr Carswell's constituency with his new colleague, said he was "constantly" talking to Eurosceptics in the Tory and Labour Party. He said he had first begun serious discussions with Mr Carswell in June, shortly after UKIP topped the poll in European elections.
Mr Carswell said he had turned to UKIP after talking to Mr Cameron's advisers about the PM's pledge of an in/out referendum on Britain's EU membership, which had convinced him the Tory leader was not "serious" about the issue.
Mr Farage told reporters in Clacton: "There is only one party for a genuine Eurosceptic. That is UKIP."
He said talk of further defections was "speculation", but added: "If Douglas Carswell wins this by-election, and I believe he will, there will be others on the Tory and Labour backbenchers who may think 'UKIP is for us.'"
The BBC's political editor Nick Robinson dismissed reports of a "planned roll-out" of defections but said some MPs may be waiting to see the result of the by-election before contemplating such a far-reaching step.
'Dream on'
Conservative Eurosceptic John Redwood said talk of eight defections was a "figment of UKIP's imagination", suggesting that this was merely an estimate of the number of MPs who may have had dinner with Stuart Wheeler, a former Tory donor who is now UKIP's treasurer.
"Dream on UKIP. It is the kind of figure that you would put round if you were UKIP." he told Radio 4's Today programme, adding that the Conservatives were the only party capable of addressing public concerns about the EU and "work out a way forward".
Among MPs to have ruled out joining UKIP include long-standing EU rebels Mark Pritchard, John Baron, Bill Cash, Bernard Jenkin and Jacob-Rees Mogg.
Speaking in Clacton, Mr Carswell said he had a "phenomenal amount of support" since announcing his decision, adding there had been a "real shift in opinion locally".
He added: "I could lose. There is a risk in this. I am putting my principles on the table."
The maverick backbencher had been unhappy with Prime Minister David Cameron's stance over Europe and his shelving of plans to allow recall elections to remove misbehaving MPs between elections.
'Regrettable''Regrettable'
Writing in the Independent newspaper, Mr Farage said: "There are an increasing number of Conservative and Labour backbenchers who not only support UKIP fully in what it is trying to achieve, but view the impact of open-door immigration... with increasing urgency." Mr Cameron has said he wants a by-election in Clacton as soon as possible and plans "to go early to Clacton" to campaign. However, a by-election is unlikely to take place before the end of the Conservative Party conference, which concludes on 1 October.
He added that if his party was successful in Clacton and those MPs thought they had a better chance standing as UKIP candidates "then more will follow".
Mr Cameron has said he wants the contest to happen as soon as possible and plans "to go early to Clacton" to campaign.
He described the defection as "regrettable" and "counterproductive".
Mr Carswell said his decision to switch parties had given him "sleepless nights" but that he wanted to see "fundamental change in British politics".
Tory cabinet minister Iain Duncan Smith, himself once a persistent rebel over Europe, said his former colleague had made a mistake leaving the party, as the prime minister had now backed an in-out referendum on EU membership.Tory cabinet minister Iain Duncan Smith, himself once a persistent rebel over Europe, said his former colleague had made a mistake leaving the party, as the prime minister had now backed an in-out referendum on EU membership.
"In the course of the next few weeks and months we will have to step up the gas and make sure the public understands this," he added."In the course of the next few weeks and months we will have to step up the gas and make sure the public understands this," he added.
"The reality is there is only one party promising that referendum.""The reality is there is only one party promising that referendum."
BBC political correspondent Ross Hawkins said several Eurosceptic Tories had said they disagreed with Mr Carswell's decision. 'Decent thing'
"In private some say they haven't ever been approached by UKIP," our correspondent added. Meanwhile, a UKIP member says he will challenge Mr Carswell to be the party's parliamentary candidate in Clacton, claiming that he had already been chosen to fight the seat in next year's general election.
The Clacton MP, who has a 12,000 majority, has been an outspoken critic of Westminster politics since being elected in 2005, calling for more democratic accountability, such as open primaries to select candidates and recall elections for MPs who break the rules. Mr Lord said Mr Carswell should have done the "decent thing" and contacted him before making his announcement, adding that he expected better treatment.
Explaining his decision to force a by-election - which he did not have to do in order to sit as a UKIP MP - he said: "The only honourable thing to do is to say to the people of Clacton, who I represent in Westminster, it's their choice." "There's a few things he could have done but he didn't do," he told Radio 4's Today programme.
Mr Carswell, who was an early supporter of Mr Cameron when he was bidding for the party leadership, said he had not spoken to the prime minister before announcing his decision. "If other candidates are just swept aside willy nilly and not given a fair hearing, then there's no hope for any other candidates in place at the moment," he added. ""If you push somebody too hard they will push back. I'm just pushing back."
UKIP said its ruling body had decided that Mr Carswell would be the party's candidate at the by-election, making clear that this decision superseded arrangements which may have been in place for a general election.
The chairman of the Conservative association in Clacton, Simon Martin-Redman, promised a tough fight against his former MP.The chairman of the Conservative association in Clacton, Simon Martin-Redman, promised a tough fight against his former MP.
"A lot of people will be very disappointed in him," he told Newsnight."A lot of people will be very disappointed in him," he told Newsnight.
"I won't criticise Douglas - I'm only disappointed he has done this.""I won't criticise Douglas - I'm only disappointed he has done this."
Meanwhile Tory activists blamed defections to UKIP on the introduction of same-sex marriage "and other unwise and ill-thought through policies".
"These alienated the grassroots of the party," chairman of Conservative Grassroots Robert Woollard said.
"Real consultation has not taken place with Conservative Party members."