ANTI-INCINERATOR candidates will be vying for seats in West Norfolk’s council elections it emerged today.

Almost 15 candidates will be hoping to unseat so-called twin-hatters who sit on both the Borough Council of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk and Norfolk County Council. Target wards include Spellowfields (Terrington St Clement, Tilney All Saints) and Emneth with Outwell.

Anti-incinerator campaigner Mike Knights, who is standing against Conservative twin-hatter Michael Chenery of Horsborough, said: “There are some who clearly don’t need to be stood against and there’s some that definitely do.”

The incinerator has caused deep divisions between the borough council, where Tories hold 52 of the 62 seats, and the county council, whose cabinet ignored a poll in which more than 65,000 West Norfolk people voted against the scheme.

West Norfolk council is now working actively to overturn proposals to build the plant at Saddlebow, near King’s Lynn.

With the Conservatives fielding 57 candidates, anti-incinerator candidates will not threaten their majority.

“Before this issue cropped up I and many people involved had no political axe to grind,” said Mr Knights. “I hope they’re in it for the long haul once we finish this thing off.”

Labour - which controlled the council in the late 1990s - is fielding 44 candidates and the Lib Dems seven. Both currently occupy four seats.

The Greens are fielding six candidates, six other Independents are standing - although some may be aligned with the anti-incinerator independents and UKIP is fielding one candidate.