UKIP leader Diane James, a former opposition Waverley borough councillor, plunged her party into disarray on Tuesday night with the shock announcement she was resigning just 18 days after being elected.

Mrs James told The Herald following her election that the “adversarial” nine years she had in opposition at Tory-dominated Waverley, for two of which she was the only opposition member, had been an “invaluable experience”.

Ward member for Ewhurst from 2006 to 2015, she served as an Independent from 2006 to 2013, and as leader of Waverley’s three-strong UKIP party from 2013 to 2015.

Announcing her resignation as UKIP leader, she said: “It has become clear that I do not have sufficient authority, nor the full support of all my MEP colleagues and party officers to implement changes I believe necessary and upon which I based my campaign.

“For personal and professional reasons therefore, I will not take the election process further. I will continue to concentrate fully on my activities and responsibilities as a Member of the European Parliament for the South East.”