Copeland’s former Labour leader has been kicked out of the party for endorsing Independent Mike Starkie’s mayoral re-election bid.

Lena Hogg confirmed that she has been removed for breaking the rules by publicly backing a non-Labour candidate.

But the unrepentant 77-year-old defended her decision amid claims that someone needed to “take a stand” against the party politics

Mrs Hogg said: “I broke party rules – I admit it. I knew this would happen and I’m not complaining.

“But like a lot of people in this country, I am fed up with people voting with parties instead of looking after the people they were elected to serve.

“If you can’t convince people that your way is right, they have a right to vote their way. I went into politics to help people, but you can’t do that if you are told how to vote by the party whip – all it does is create frustration.

“I think too many people listen to parties and not to people and that is why the country is deadlocked at the moment (Brexit).”

Mrs Hogg said she first became aware of the importance of working cooperatively with people from different parties when her Labour group went into a coalition.

“I realised how easily we could get things done if we took party politics out of it,” she said.

Mrs Hogg announced earlier this week that she was throwing her weight behind the Independent who became the borough’s first elected mayor in 2015.

She said: “Mike has done a great job leading Copeland through an extremely challenging period and I was pleased to work with him in coalition.

“Without doubt Copeland Council is in much better shape than it was when he was elected.

Speaking earlier this week, current Labour leader Councillor Raymond Gill said he had no issues with Mr Starkie.

But branded Ms Hogg’s comments “disgraceful”, adding that “as a member of the Labour party I would be backing the Labour candidate Linda Jones-Bulman, and I would have thought she would as well.”

Mrs Hogg was elected to Copeland Council in 2011 and was selected to mayor Mike Starkie’s executive committee in May 2015.

However, she stood down as deputy mayor and Labour group leader in August 2017, citing family reasons.

Mrs Hogg, who has decided not to appeal the decision, will stand as an Independent for Egremont town council.

She has been an active member of the Labour Party for around a decade and said she had the greatest of respect the Labour candidate Linda Jones-Bulman but believed that Mike Starkie remained the “best person for the job”.

The third candidate for the May 2 election is the Conservative councillor Ged McGrath.

Mrs Hogg has said she will be supporting the three Labour Party candidates Mike McVeigh, Sam Pollen and Tom Higgins in her own town of Egremont.