Sacked mayoress Rose Thompson was last night set to defiantly attend her first council meeting since her shock defection to the British National Party.

Despite numerous calls to resign, the Keighley town councillor was due to attend the general purposes committee, insisting: "I want to stay."

She said the criticism heaped on her this week "goes in one ear and out the other".

As she spoke, rumours were rife that another member of Keighley Town Council was set to join the far right party.

The Keighley News has spoken to several councillors about the speculation.

One who was prepared to comment -- Cllr Kathrine Roberts -- said: "I am definitely not joining the BNP. Whatever leanings I do have will be kept to myself.

"I will continue to work for the benefit of Keighley as a whole. I will be staying as an independent candidate.

Cllr Roberts, who sat on the sterring group which founded the town council said: "Even if I did decide to join the BNP, it would be when I decided to, not when someone else decided I would be."

Cllr Brian Hudson, who was also on the streering group said: "We believe there may be another one lined up in the next week or so."

Ian Dawson, BNP candidate for next Thursday's Keighley West by-election for Bradford Council, said: "I'm pretty sure it will happen."

Cllr Thompson told Town Mayor Cllr Tony Wright of her decision last Thursday night.

Cllr Wright said he felt "sadness and betrayal" at her actions.

Cllr Wright, a long time friend of Cllr Thompson, said: "My first reaction was one of shock and disbelief, but this has turned to a sense of sadness and betrayal.

"Cllr Thompson's duties as mayoress will cease forthwith, as I along with many parts of the Keighley community would find her affiliation offensive.

"I believe she must stand down and offer herself to the electorate as a BNP candidate, otherwise she has no electoral mandate and is effectively in contempt of the voters in her ward. The politics of division have no place in a civilised society."

Cllr John Philip described Cllr Thompson's decision as a "body blow".

He said: "She is one of the last people I would have expected to defect. She was always a people person.

"I think morally she should stand down, although legally we can't make her. I just hope there aren't any more in the closet but I wouldn't be at all surprised.

"We know Keighley Town Council is being targeted by the BNP

Cllr Thompson, a former Keighley Community Personality of the Year, gave up her independent status on Keighley Town Council to take up the BNP whip.

She has now refused to stand down as a town councillor and fight a re-election as a BNP candidate, despite calls to do so.

Cllr Thompson cited a lack of funding for predominantly white areas and a rapid increase in Britain's population as reasons for the move.

The BNP now has two representatives on the council in councillors Thompson and Angela Clarke.

Cllr Thompson, who was elected as a candidate for Woodhouse and Hainworth, said at a press conference: "I can imagine there is going to be a lot of people appalled, there's also a lot of people that will be quite happy that somebody is standing up."

She has now urged the Government to "shut the doors on immigration".

"Illegal immigrants need to go," she said. "It's time to concentrate on our own problems. Statistics show that there were 52 million people in Britain in the 90s and 65 million now. We can't keep flooding the island.

"We should stop it all until we sort out the mess we're in. When we can say for Britain there's nobody waiting for hospital places and school places for every child, then we should look at immigration again."

Cllr Thompson, a town councillor for four years and mayoress since last May, said a reduction in funding for a proposed play area in Parkwood had sparked the defection.

She added that Cllr Wright "didn't say a right lot" when she told him of her decision.