A UKIP council candidate says she has been told she can no longer stand for the group — after branding a private party discussion paper as worthy of the BNP.

Kath Kavanagh had been campaigning to stand for a council seat in Breightmet, where she stood in May 2014, and took 35 per of the vote.

But she was told by the leaders of the branch she was no longer allowed to stand after she got into an argument with Little Lever UKIP councillor Paul Richardson.

Cllr Richardson had written a paper for the group, called ‘The Elephant in the Town Hall’, within which he gives a ‘brief history of Asian immigration’ into Bolton.

The document, seen by The Bolton News, alleges that Labour has for years "patently and obviously" block-voted Muslim friendly applications through the planning committee.

The paper also claims millions of pounds had been directed to "so-called deprived areas which seems to coincide with areas of high ethnicity".

Labour has denied the claims.

The Bolton News: The letter from the UKIP chairman to Kathleen Kavanagh who stood for UKIP last year but has been told she's no longer welcome to stand as a candidate.

Ms Kavanagh, of Brookfold Lane, Harwood, said she decided to go public about the row after former Westhoughton South candidate Les Wareing told The Bolton News he was told he could not stand in May after an argument over where the party would target seats.

The former college lecturer said: “I stood up at the meeting and they attacked me.

“I objected to it because I thought it was racist.

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“It was really awful. I thought — what good can come from this? It was worthy of the BNP.”

Ms Kavanagh accused Bolton's UKIP chairman Joan Johnson of being a "tyrant", after she was sent an email warning her about her behaviour at the meeting.

The email said: “You acted in a disruptive manner during the meeting and attempted to intimidate Paul Richardson.

"You interrupted on several occasions, whereas in a branch meeting it is usual to speak with the permission of the chairman.”

Mrs Johnson said there were other issues that informed her decision to de-select Ms Kavanagh as a candidate for Breightmet, including writing letters to The Bolton News without consulting her and "rubbishing party leaflets".

Mrs Johnson added: “She started on Paul Richardson and was like a dog with a bone.

“I had no particularly view on the document. It had not been discussed in full, and it was a branch issue that wasn’t meant to be made public.

“I did not want to lose her as a Breightmet candidate.

“It is certainly not a dictatorship and she is very wrong to say that.”

Cllr Richardson denied the document was racist and said he meant it as a discussion paper towards UKIP policy.

He said: “When she said this was like the BNP it was just beyond my comprehension.

“I said she was wrong and asked her if she was in the right party.

“We have to address this issue and we did it in the form of a discussion document."