Former Montgomeryshire MP Lembit Opik has been expelled from the Liberal Democrats, the party has confirmed.

Mr Opik's expulsion comes after he appeared as a special guest at an online Conservative Party event hosted in March entitled "How to stop the Lib Dems - an insider's guide", appearing alongside Conservative MP Chris Grayling.

Advertising material for the event, for which tickets were available at between £6-£12, describes it as an "extraordinary opportunity" to discuss how to stop the Liberal Democrats with "an insider's guide" to how they plan their campaigns.

Mr Opik was MP for Montgomeryshire from 1997 before losing his seat 2010, seeing a 7,000 seat majority in the constituency ebb away to Conservative candidate Glyn Davies.

A Liberal Democrat party spokesperson gave a short confirmation that Mr Opik had been expelled from the party when contacted by the County Times today.

Mr Opik says he will appeal the decision.

More follows.