A BOURNEMOUTH councillor has quit the Conservative Party citing “utter chaos and incoherence” at a national level as a reason for his decision.

Councillor Andy Jones, who is a ward member for Boscombe East and Pokesdown, will now sit on the local authority as an Independent.

He becomes the second BCP Council member to leave the Conservatives in a matter of weeks after Redhill and Northbourne councillor Jackie Edwards resigned.

In a statement, Cllr Jones said: “After much thought and consideration, I have taken the decision to resign from the Conservative Party.

"The national party no longer represents my views or values and continues to govern in such a way that I consider wholly unacceptable.

"The utter chaos and incoherence over policy from within a divided party leading to the ongoing pursuance of a political agenda that I simply do not believe in or consider to be in the best interests of local residents or the wider electorate makes it impossible for me to continue to be a member of the party.”

Councillor Jones said it currently his intention to stand in May’s local elections as an Independent candidate.

He added: "I will continue to represent the residents and local businesses of Boscombe East and Pokesdown to the very best of my ability as an Independent councillor and fight hard to make their voices heard within the council as well as externally in dealing with issues that really matter to them.

“It is a fantastic local community, has so many hardworking and dedicated volunteers across a myriad of different areas, and is one that I am very proud to serve."

The resgination means the BCP Conservative Group has 35 members on BCP Council. There are 41 members representing other groups or sitting as Independents.

BCP Council and Conservative Group leader Cllr Drew Mellor said: "Andy is a diligent and hard working councillor and I'm sure will continue to serve Boscombe well.

"We appreciate his frustrations with the national situation and will continue to work well with him for Boscombe and BCP."