THE SNP's almost ignored contest for the deputy leadership took a bizarre turn yesterday when Mr Peter Kearney, regarded as the outsider in the race, appeared to endorse the views of notorious American political extremist Lyndon H. LaRouche, Jr.

Mr Kearney granted an interview to a magazine, the Executive Intelligence Review, published by LaRouche, a former convict who has been accused of being a fascist and conman with wildly eccentric views. Mr Kearney has since placed the contents on his website.

The elderly Mr LaRouche, a former fringe presidential candidate regarded by many as beyond the pale of American politics because of his fondness for wild conspiracy theories, is a supporter of a new world economic order. He wants a new Bretton Woods agreement to rewrite the old rules agreed after the Second World War when more than 40 nations signed a deal setting up the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

Mr Kearney, a Glasgow-based surveyor, is the SNP's national political education and training officer and convener of Coatbridge and Chryston constituency.

In the interview he was asked about a new Bretton Woods agreement for a ''sound'' monetary system as advocated by Mr LaRouche.

Asked how he viewed developments, he replied: ''As far as the push for a new Bretton Woods, I have endorsed that policy.''

Mr Kearney, who backs Mr Alex Neil for the leadership, went on to call for a restructuring of world debt by the IMF and World Bank to end the ''suicidal conditions'' attached to loans.

He told The Herald last night he had no idea who Mr LaRouche was and knew nothing of his activities. ''All I know is that someone telephoned me and asked if they could ask a few questions on behalf of a magazine. I was happy to say yes and they later e-mailed me the transcript. I was happy with the text.''

Asked if he knew about the magazine's ownership, he said: ''No. I did not know that. As far as I was concerned, I was just happy to get some coverage for the interview.''

SNP business manager Michael Russell, seen as an opponent of Mr Kearney and Mr Neil in the contest, said: ''People should be careful about giving credibility to fringe organisations, particularly those with such unsavoury reputations as those involved with Lyndon LaRouche. It is either naive or simply foolish.''

q Mr Kearney claimed the Edinburgh Marchmont branch had voted to support him in the election. He said Marchmont was the branch to which Mr Kenny MacAskill, one of his two higher-profile rivals for the deputy leadership, is a member.

Mr Kearney will circulate party members this week with his plans for a new role for the deputy leader. He believes MSPs should elect their own deputy leader as a new party post while leaving the existing job open to the rank and file outside the Parliament chamber.

''Our party must be served by a senior vice convener who has the time, energy, commitment and vision to make this happen. It is a challenge which I welcome,'' he said.