Eric Illsley announces his resignation

With the Labour party motioning to unseat him, and David Cameron and Ed Miliband speaking out against him, it was always likely to end thus for Eric Illsley. The receipt offender has just issued this statement:

“I would like to apologise to my constituents, family and friends, following my court appearance, for the distress and embarrassment caused by my actions that I deeply, deeply regret. I have begun to wind down my parliamentary office, following which I will resign from Parliament before my next court appearance. I will be making no further comment.”

Which leaves us with the prospect of a by-election in Barnsley Central, probably in May. It’s one that Labour will expect to win, not least because they achieved 47.3 percent of the vote last time around, ahead of both the Lib Dems and Tories on 17.3 percent. But a persistent BNP presence, combined with the nature of Illsley’s downfall, suggests that this could be more uncertain than all that.