UKIP has selected Dr Peter G Le Maistre as the party’s Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Stourbridge.

Dr Le Maistre was adopted to fight for the seat currently held by Conservative MP Margot James at the Stourbridge branch’s meeting on February 12.

The 68-year-old researcher and volunteer counsellor, who is originally from Jersey, said of his selection: “It’s an absolute honour to have been selected to fight Stourbridge and I look forward to taking the seat.”

Dr Le Maistre, who moved to Stourbridge in April 2012, said he’ll be trying to encourage voters in the next General Election “to take far more interest in what is happening in their area”.

He said he believes the run up to the next big polling day, set for May 2015, marks a “golden opportunity” for UKIP, adding: “The Coalition is in disarray, Labour is lacking in its policies; we have a complete range of policies, carefully thought out and fully costed.

“I believe we have an excellent chance of getting many new councillors and in 2014 to have the majority of MEPs and in 2015 we should be in with a chance to have representation in Westminster.”

Dr Le Maistre, who a member of UKIP’s health policy group, has a background in telecommunications, engineering and project management and has been interested and actively involved in politics since his 20s.

He was previously a member of the Liberal Democrats and stood as an independent candidate in Jersey’s Deputies election in 2005, but became a member of UKIP three years ago.