The independent MP for Tatton is expected to confirm his intention to stand in the Tory seat of Brentwood, Essex, at a press conference on Friday.

But on Monday he remained tight-lipped about his future.

"I am devoting myself to constituency and parliamentary matters between now and then," he said.

"But I suspect there is going to be more interest in it on Friday than I actually want." Mr Bell announced he was considering challenging for a seat in October and said he had received many requests from party members across the country asking him to stand.

The decision came despite an election pledge in the Knutsford Guardian three years ago when he said he would quit politics altogether after serving one term in Tatton.

When asked about that pledge, he said it referred only to Tatton. On Monday, the Daily Mail criticised Mr Bell for choosing to stand in another Tory constituency and described him as a 'cartoon crusader.'

"Going for Brentwood and Ongar makes him look just like another on-the-make politico," said columnist Peter McKay.

But Mr Bell said he did not want to comment further on his possible decision to stand in Essex where a Christian group has allegedly 'taken over' the local Conservative association.

"You can never replicate what happened in Tatton and I am not a professional politician and never claim to be," he said.