Dover Town Investment Zone (DTIZ) campaigner Alan Shirley has denied his petition was “politically motivated.”

He started the paper campaign in December 2013 and attracted thousands of signatures from residents who wanted to know why Dover remained undeveloped.

Mr Shirley, of Valley Road in River, called for the district council to hold a public meeting, discussing why progress had taken so long.

He claims his motivation came after he moved back to Dover from Australia to find little had been done to develop the town.

In a district council election leaflet, Conservative Nigel Collor, who represents the Castle ward, said that “months were lost” because of his “politically-motivated petition and huge numbers of Freedom of Information inquiries”.

The leaflet says: “However that is all in the past and very soon we will be seeing the new complex rising from the ground.”

The petition was backed by MP Charlie Elphicke and all of the town’s political candidates for the general election.

Mr Shirley said: “I instigated the petition, I ran the petition.

“At no time during the course of the petition was I a member of any political party.

“All four Parliamentary candidates demonstrated their support for it by signing within days of its commencement, it was apolitical.

“Furthermore, I ask Mr Collor to demonstrate exactly how the DTIZ project was delayed by a petition.”

Cllr Collor said: “To be honest I have no further comment to make.

“Officers were taken off their work to deal with the petition and Freedom of Information requests when they could have been pushing things forward.

“Obviously Mr Shirley has his views and I have mine.”

Mr Shirley said he was approached by the MP to join the Conservatives last year after the petition grew in popularity. He decided to join Ukip in August.

He aims to stand as a district councillor but has not confirmed which ward he hopes to represent.

Mr Elphicke said: “Everyone knows that Ukip has been running an astonishingly negative campaign and clearly they mean to continue to do so.

“Everyone knows that Alan has been involved with Ukip for a very long time and I am pleased that he has now gone public with his political position.”