Oxfordshire county councillor John Howell has been selected by the Tories to fight the Henley by-election when Boris Johnson resigns as an MP.

Mr Howell, a former partner in City accountants Ernst & Young, was chosen from a shortlist of three. The shortlist also included local councillors Ann Ducker and John Cotton.

Mr Johnson is standing down after winning the election to Mayor of London.

No date has been set for the by-election but it is expecetd to be June or early July.

A cabinet member on Oxfordshire County Council and the member for Dorchester and Berinsfield, Mr Howell was awarded an OBE in 2000.

Mr Howell said: "For now I just want to say that it is a huge privilege to have been selected as the Conservative candidate for my home constituency.

"I plan to spend the next few weeks talking to as many local people as possible about the issues that affect us all in South Oxfordshire."