Alan 'Howling Laud' Hope, leader of the Official Monster Raving Loony Party, has been given financial backing to run in the 2015 general election by a UK Independence Party donor.
Arron Banks, who previously backed the Conservatives but pledged £1million to UKIP in October, has stumped up the £500 necessary for Mr Hope to stand as a candidate MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip.
Mr Hope, whose party aims to satirise British politics, said he did not think his acceptance of the offer hypocritical, saying: “It's more of a friendly gesture than anything else. It's not a donation... Alright it is.”
He later added: “It's not a sponsorship or a donation; it's a goodwill gesture. That's the words I was looking for.”
Only last month Mr Hope had shrugged off rumours he was thinking of defecting to the anti European Union party on the BBC's Daily Politics programme, although he did concede 'there could be something in it'.
He was reported to have expressed an interest in joining Nigel Farage's party in a speech he gave at the recent Rochester by-election, but he told the programme his comments had been 'tongue in cheek'.
Today he said: “What happened there was I said to Nigel Farage, 'No, no, no. You've got the wrong idea. The word isn't 'defect', it's 'infect'. We're going to infect UKIP with Loonyism.' We're not going to walk the floor.”
Mr Hope, who supports Heathrow's expansion and wants to build an extra-terrestrial landing pad at the airport if elected in May 2015, added: “I've always got on with Nigel Farage. I've known him a long time. He's got his opinions and I've got mine. Everyone's entitled to their opinions.”
Businessman Mr Banks, who is chief executive of Southern Rock Insurance, had previously given £25,000 to the Tories.
But in October he claimed former foreign secretary William Hague had downplayed his offer to donate a further £100,000, leading him to turn his support to UKIP with a £1m donation.
A spokesperson confirmed the £500 donation.
