A PROSPECTIVE Tory election candidate who had hoped to become the party's first black MP was deselected by his constituency association last night.

Hyndburn Conservatives in Lancashire voted 64-4 to sack Mr Hugh Neil, 32, after a six-week investigation into alleged bogus claims that he made about his background.

The association was also told that Mr Neil was an undischarged bankrupt - which would have barred him from becoming an MP.

On his CV Mr Neil claimed to have a doctorate from Manchester Business School and Harvard Business School, to have been an adviser to the late Lord Joseph, and to be a member of the Institute of Directors.

He failed to turn up to last night's meeting in Clayton-le-Moor, Lancashire.

Constituency chairman Win Frankland said: ``I am very sad it has come to this.

``He could have been a very good candidate but unfortunately he lived on Fantasy Island.''

Mr Neil was not at the house he has been renting in the constituency last night. Neighbours said he had been seen loading his car in the early in the morning.

The party will now have to select a new candidate to fight the marginal seat, held by Labour's Greg Pope with a majority of 1960.

Four years earlier Mr Neil was deselected as candidate for Wallsend after the collapse of his estate agency business.

He also claimed to be chairman of Britain's 19th largest building society, the Kenton and Middlesex, but the Hyndburn association discovered it had never been authorised to trade.

Mr Neil claimed he was a victim of a racist campaign to discredit him. He said last week: ``I am the victim of institutionalised racism in the media and Tory party.''

Miss Frankland said she was ``dismayed'' at Mr Neil's claims against the association.

``He has impugned my professional integrity to a large extent,'' she said.