Tory MEP kicked out of EPP-ED

The European Parliament’s centre-right group EPP-ED has kicked out Conservative MEP Roger Helmer.

Mr Helmer’s expulsion – the first ever by the group – came after he launched an attack on group leader Hans-Gert Pottering during a plenary debate on a motion to censure EC president Jose Manuel Barroso.

Mr Helmer had put his name to an UKIP-led motion seeking to censure Mr Barroso for a trip he undertook on a billionaire friend’s yacht before he became president.

Mr Barroso survived the vote easily and Mr Helmer has also had the Conservative whip withdrawn.