A former mayor of High Wycombe has defected from the Liberal Democrats to join a growing independent group.

Buckinghamshire County Councillor Chaudhary Ditta has announced that he will join two other former Lib Dems in the East Wycombe Independent group which caused huge upsets in the May elections.

The move is a blow to the party who are now only represented by three councillors on the county council and one person on Wycombe District Council.

Cllr Ditta, who represents the Totteridge and Bowerdean ward alongside EWI founder member Julia Wassell, said: “Julia Wassell and I feel that we are more effective when we work together, this has been the case for over a decade now.

“My aim is to represent my residents as effectively as possible. I would prefer to do this with Julia Wassell and the EWI party."

Having formed weeks before the elections six months ago, the EWI group claimed three seats on WDC, making them the biggest party in East Wycombe. He is now their second BCC councillor alongside Cllr Wassell.

In contrast, the Liberal Democrats have struggled this year and dropped from seven WDC councillors to just one in the election.

EWI leader Matt Knight, who was also a former Lib Dem, said: “Being local councillors it is easier to work together in a pair since the county council changed the rules to one councillor for one division.”