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Broadcaster Ian Dale has announced he is stepping down from his role as LBC radio presenter after 14 years to stand in the general election.
“You all know how important politics is to me,” the 61-year-old said on air.
“If you’ve been listening for any length of time, you’ll know that I’ve always had two ambitions in life: one was to be a radio presenter and the other was to become a member of Parliament.
Broadcasting regulations prohibit election candidates from broadcasting radio programs.
according to Sky NewsThe 61-year-old is seeking to run as the Conservative candidate in Tunbridge Wells, Kent.
Mr Dale previously made an unsuccessful attempt in north Norfolk in 2005.
“The last time I ran for office, voters resisted, but this time I am running again in the general election,” he said.
“Whatever the outcome, I feel I can play a role in restoring trust and integrity in politics.”
Dale said there was no guarantee he would be selected as a candidate, much less win, but “if I don’t at least try, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life.”
“Even if you don’t agree with my politics, I hope you can at least respect them,” he told the audience.
During his time at LBC, as well as the network’s evening programmes, Dale presented four overnight General Election programmes, two overnight US Presidential Election programmes and the overnight Scottish and UK Brexit Referendum programmes.
LBC said it would announce its election night programming plans in the coming days.
Additional reporting by the Press Association