Former Lib Dem councillor Greg Couzens tweets he may stand for UKIP against Simon Danczuk in the General Election

Greg Couzen's 'UKIP' tweet

Former Liberal Democrat councillor, Greg Couzens posted a tweet on Saturday (15 November) saying he is considering standing for UKIP against Simon Danczuk in the forthcoming General Election.

Mr Couzen's tweet said: 'Considering standing as UKIP against you. Are you OK with that?'

It is not known if Mr Couzens was being serious or intending the tweet as an attempt at humour - when approached by Rochdale Online and asked to confirm if he was serious, Mr Couzens responded: "No comment".

Mr Danczuk, who re-tweeted Mr Couzens tweet to his own followers, took it seriously saying: "We know UKIP have some very dodgy candidates but if they were to choose Greg Couzens as candidate for Rochdale he could be the most ridiculous one yet.

"Only a few years ago Greg was standing for the most pro-Europe party in British politics as a Liberal Democrat. This was also a party, remember, that wanted to give all illegal immigrants the right to stay in the UK. The fact that he's now considering standing for UKIP is an incredible u-turn and shows that Greg's political beliefs matter for little when he sees a passing bandwagon to jump on.

"For years Greg has been part of the problem holding Rochdale back. The question Nigel Farage and the local UKIP party must answer is do they really want to select someone who was a very close friend of Cyril Smith to be their candidate in Rochdale?"

Mr Couzens was a Lib Dem councillor and Council Finance Portfolio Holder before defecting to form his own short-lived party, the Independent Alliance.

Mr Couzens stood down as a councillor in 2011, choosing not to seek election as an Independent Alliance candidate. He has since been appointed vice-chairman of Rochdale High Street Foundation by the council.

It is understood that UKIP has yet to choose its candidate for Rochdale.