Royle Family star Ricky Tomlinson could run...

LIVERPOOL actor and Royle Family star Ricky Tomlinson has thrown his hat in the ring to become the next MP for Liverpool Wavertree.

Tomlinson, 70, said he was “incensed” by the selection of Londoner Luciana Berger, 28, by Labour to stand in the seat.

He said the current state of British politics after the expenses scandal was “abhorrent” and that parliament needed more working class representatives.

The popular star is considering standing for the Arthur Scargill-led Socialist Labour Party, of which he is a member.

He said it would be up to a meeting of the party next week as to whether he would be the candidate.

But if chosen he said his campaign slogan could be “Berger? My arse”, in homage to his famed TV character.

The news will come as a further blow to Labour and Miss Berger who has been embroiled in controversy since she was chosen to fight the seat less than two weeks ago.

The director of Labour Friends Of Israel beat Liverpool councillor Wendy Simon and Joyce Still by a margin of around 2-1 to win the candidacy for the Wavertree seat from an all-women shortlist.

Veteran Walton MP Peter Kilfoyle branded her a student politician who lacked the experience to do the job.

And last week her lack of local knowledge was exposed when she could not say who Anfield legend Bill Shankly was or who sang Ferry Across the Mersey.

Tomlinson is a well known trade unionist, having been imprisoned for acting as a flying picket during the building strike in which trade unionists confronted the then Conservative government.

He was jailed in 1973 along with fellow flying picket Des Warren who has since died.

Their imprisonment followed the previous year’s strike in which they had travelled from site to site urging employees to walk out.

He was sentenced to six years for “conspiracy to intimidate” but released after two years following massive protests.

The Wavertree seat is the Liberal Democrats’ number one target in the North West and will be the key battleground in Liverpool.