Neil Hamilton, the disgraced former Conservative MP, could be on the verge of a parliamentary comeback at the age of 65 - for Ukip.

The Independent has learnt that the Thatcherite former minister, who lost his Tatton seat after allegations that he took “cash for questions”, has been shortlisted for one of Ukip’s best prospects at next May’s general election. He will go up against four other candidates in South Basildon and East Thurrock on Wednesday night.

Some local Ukip activists are furious, claiming that Mr Hamilton is being “parachuted” into the Essex seat by the party’s London headquarters. It ditched its original candidate, Kerry Smith, in October amid rumours that the plum constituency was being lined up for a “big fish”.

Critics of Mr Hamilton inside Ukip are worried that a figure associated with the sleaze allegations of the 1990s could become one of the party’s most prominent faces. They believe claim he is being rewarded for his work as the party’s deputy chairman after failing to win the nomination in Boston and Skegness, and making Ukip’s list for the European elections in May.

In pictures: The rise of Ukip Show all 8 1 /8 In pictures: The rise of Ukip In pictures: The rise of Ukip 1993: Alan Sked forms Ukip History professor Alan Sked had been active in anti-EU politics for a while beore he founded Ukip in 1993. He resigned from the party after the 1997 election, concerned that it was attracting far-right members, and has been critical of Ukip since. Picture: Reuters Reuters In pictures: The rise of Ukip 2005: Kilroy defects Former TV presenter Robert Kilroy-Silk founded Veritas in 2005, after a failed bid to become leader, and took many of Ukip's elected members with him. But the party slowly lost its popularity and didn't put forward any candidates in the last election. Picture: REUTERS/Kieran Doherty REUTERS KD/RUS In pictures: The rise of Ukip 2010: Farage becomes leader, again Farage had led Ukip from 2006 until 2009, when he stood down to fight against the Speaker, John Bercow, for his Buckingham seat. He failed to win the election and returned to lead the party in November 2010. Picture: REUTERS/Kieran Doherty REUTERS/Kieran Doherty In pictures: The rise of Ukip 2010: Ukip fights for election Nigel Farage was injured in a plane crash on polling day in the 2010 general election, but his party increased its success in the votes. It fielded 572 candidates and took 3.1% of the vote, though failed to win any seats. REUTERS/Darren Staples REUTERS/Darren Staples In pictures: The rise of Ukip 2013: Eastleigh gains Ukip's candidate Diane James got the highest ever number of votes for any candidate from the party, but was beaten by the Liberal Democrats. The surge in support gave Ukip confidence ahead of local and European elections later in the year. Picture: Reuters In pictures: The rise of Ukip 2013: Bloom kicked out Godfrey Bloom, who served as an Ukip MEP from 2004 to 2014, had the whip withdrawn in 2013 after sexist comments and an attack on a journalist. He sat as an independent MEP until 2014, when he ended his term in office. Picture: REUTERS/Luke MacGregor In pictures: The rise of Ukip 2014: European election success Ukip got a higher proportion of the vote than any other party in 2014's European elections, adding 11 new MEPs and taking its total to 24. REUTERS/Luke MacGregor In pictures: The rise of Ukip 2014: Carswell defects Douglas Carswell defected from Ukip at the end of August, and was followed by Mark Reckless at the end of September, who resigned from the Tories amid rumours of many more defections to come. Picture: REUTERS/Toby Melville

“It’s not a great idea,” said one Ukip activist said. “South Essex is a crucial area for us. This could damage our prospects in some other target seats. Local party members are very unhappy about what the London HQ is doing.”

In 1997, Mr Hamilton lost his once-safe Tatton seat to Martin Bell, the former BBC war correspondent, who stood as an independent on an anti-sleaze platform. Three years earlier, he had resigned as a minister after allegations that he received cash in brown envelopes for asking Commons questions while a backbencher for Mohamed Al-Fayed, the owner of Harrods. Although he denied the claims, a parliamentary inquiry found that he took cash for questions.

In an unrelated matter, Ukip has announced that that it has suspended Roger Bird, its general secretary, while it investigates allegations of impropriety over candidate selection. It is understood that he was accused of helping a former girlfriend, although she was not selected for a Commons seat.

A Ukip spokesman declined to discuss the claims, but insisted that they did not relate to a recent row which reportedly saw more than a dozen Ukip activists quit the party over leader Nigel Farage's top-down handling of the candidate selection process.