A member of Allerdale and Copeland Green Party is recommending a vote for Labour – and is urging his party members not to stand.

Allan Todd made the plea at an emergency party meeting last week where members discussed whether or not to stand for Copeland and Workington. He told members that even if the majority decision was to stand, he would not be campaigning or voting for the Green candidates and would be throwing his support behind Labour instead.

Mr Todd said that he would do so even if it meant he would be expelled from the Green Party.

“Sometimes, an individual has to do what they think is the right thing to do – even if they have to pay a personal price,” he said.

“No one can predict with any certainty how voters will behave. Every political commentator is agreed that voting volatility will be extremely high this time.

“It is entirely possible that the Green votes in both Copeland and Workington could make the difference between Labour or the Tories winning both here and nationally. Sometimes it’s necessary to put the interests of the wider population above narrow party interests.”

“Before we vote, we all need to think about how we would feel if Johnson scraped back in as PM, because his hard-right Tory Party gained one or two more seats than Labour and became the largest single party in the House of Commons - and that those one or two more seats were Copeland or Workington.

Jack Lenox, prospective parliamentary candidate for the Green Party in Copeland, said he did not agree with Mr Todd’s view.

“Allan is a good friend, however I disagree with him on this. We have absolutely no time to waste in tackling the climate crisis and it is more vital now than ever that the voice of the Green Party is heard loud and clear across the country.

“We tried standing down in 2017 and it achieved nothing, Labour didn’t even acknowledge that we did it, and the media narrative was that support had shifted back to the two main parties even though the polling showed this was clearly tactical.

“The green vote is not simply drawn from the Labour Party, we draw members from across the political spectrum and nationally we have a proven track record of winning council seats from the Conservatives.

“However I am not oblivious to the context surrounding my candidature and I am writing to the Isle of Wight Labour Party where our Green candidate, Vix Lowthion, stands the best chance of beating the incumbent Conservative. I am hoping I will be able to pair with the Labour candidate there and if they will cast a Green vote on my behalf there, I’m willing to cast a Labour vote on their behalf here.”