A Labour Party boss has quit his post after six years, saying he is “fed up” of the party selecting candidates who are not from the area they represent.

Ghulam Raja resigned as chairman of the party's Farnworth branch at the weekend citing his frustrations with the party on a national and local level.

As well as calling for a clearer stance on Brexit, Mr Raja pointed to Bolton South East MP Yasmin Qureshi as an example of the problem he had with selection of candidates.

He said: “She never lived here. She came from London.

“Locally, people were just interested to hold the positions in the town hall. They never considered what the people wanted on the ground.

“I’ve been telling my party, ‘You have to change your attitude.

"You have to have local representation, not only people who want a seat in the town hall.

“They should have a connection on the ground.

"If you don’t choose a local person who knows the local situation, it will go wrong.

"Now, I think enough is enough and this is the best time for me to quit.”

Cllr Linda Thomas, leader of the Labour group at Bolton Council, said she was disappointed that Mr Raja had quit his post, describing him as an “enthusiastic member” who joined in local campaigns.

She said: “The party rules are clear that it is the members of each branch who select their own candidate. This is the procedure in each of the 20 wards. There is no imposition of candidates.”

Ms Qureshi thanked Mr Raja for his service to the party but “wholly” disagreed with his comments.

(Image: ABNM Photography)

She said: “Whether or not a local representative has grown up in the area doesn’t impact on how well they can represent that area, which is more a question of their competence and compassion for local issues.

“Candidates for local and national elections are selected by local party members.”

The Local Democracy Reporting Service understands Mr Raja had applied to be the Labour Party candidate in Farnworth at the next council elections but was not selected.

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Mr Raja said he was offered the opportunity to stand in other wards in Bolton.

Ruth Pitchford, who has been selected as the Labour Party candidate in Farnworth, is understood to have been born and raised in Farnworth and continues to live there.