A long-serving magistrate has been named in Parliament as a member of the far right British National Party by a Bradford MP.

Bradford North MP Terry Rooney told the House of Commons yesterday that Bradford JP William Stanley was a member of the BNP and called for a debate on the selection procedure for magistrates.

His calls were backed by Commons leader Peter Hain, who said the matter would now be considered by the Lord Chancellor.

Information has also been passed to the Telegraph & Argus claiming that Mr Stanley, who has served on the Bradford bench for 13 years, has been spotted with BNP activists at a meeting.

Mr Rooney told the House: "I wondered if we could have an early debate on the selection procedure because it is imperative that we maintain impartiality and non-discrimination."

"We've just had a situation in Bradford where we've discovered one of our magistrates, a William Stanley, is a member of the British National Party."

Commons Leader Peter Hain called the situation "worrying", adding: "Frankly, I do not think that members of the British National Party are fit to stand in any public position at all and their racism and neo-Nazism makes them unfit for office in my view." When told by the Telegraph & Argus that he had been named in Parliament as a BNP member, Mr Stanley, who lives in Caldene Avenue, Low Moor, refused to make any comment.

The T&A has tried twice before to question Mr Stanley about his alleged connections with the BNP, whose activities are being investigated by police after Bradford members were seen boasting of criminal activities in the undercover BBC documentary The Secret Agent.

On the first occasion, Mr Stanley indicated he was not a current member of the party.

When asked if he had ever been a member of the BNP Mr Stanley twice declined to comment.

"I don't talk to the press," said Mr Stanley.

On a second occasion when the T&A presented Mr Stanley with a copy of what was said to be a BNP membership list, he again declined to comment.

A spokesman for the Department of Constitutional Affairs (DCA), which oversees the appointment of magistrates, said that people were no longer asked to state their political allegiance when appointed to the bench.

"But members are supposed to have real understanding of local communities and society in general and respect for people from different, ethnic, cultural and social backgrounds. They should have experience of life beyond family, friends and work," he said.

Shipley MP Chris Leslie, a junior minister in the DCA, said he was "concerned and interested" to see more details about Mr Stanley.

"At this stage I would like to see any evidence of activities that may make an individual incompatible with the position they hold.

"It would be worthwhile seeking more evidence from my legal team of the sort of circumstances in which an individual disqualifies themselves from the judiciary."

And Paul Meszaros, of Bradford TUC, today said an immediate review of cases over which Mr Stanley had presided should be considered.

"People across Bradford must have faith in the judicial system and, obviously, if there is a BNP magistrate it would call his impartiality into question," said Mr Meszaros.

"Police officers are no longer allowed to join the BNP. The party doesn't believe in democratic ideals. An organisation based on racial ideals has no part of a democratic society. It's absolutely incompatible with sitting on the bench."

Operation Black Vote, which promotes greater ethnic involvement in the judicial and electoral systems and which conducted a pilot scheme in Bradford two years ago, is asking the DCA to conduct a full review into Mr Stanley.

Spokesman Ashok Viswanathan said: "This raises important questions as to whether a magistrate who holds views that the BNP holds can fairly dispense justice in a court of law.

"We think it's very important that something is done and is seen to be done quickly. If there isn't a review of current procedures it will have the potential to damage the integrity and reputation magistrates have in the community."

Mr Rooney told the T&A that he believed being a member of the BNP was totally incompatible with being a magistrate or a member of the judiciary.

"The people who are put forward as magistrates are supposed to be put through a rigorous vetting procedure to make sure they don't hold prejudices about things like disability or race. It seems it has failed in this case," he said.

Angela Barker, the chairman of the Bradford bench, said: "In recruiting someone for appointment as a magistrate the Lord Chancellor's advisory committee is looking for personal qualities, namely good character, understanding and communication, social awareness, maturity, sound temperament, sound judgement, commitment and reliability.

"Magistrates throughout their period on the bench are expected to act in accordance with these qualities and if at any stage they fall short there are mechanisms in place to address the issues."