Mark Adams

A new political grouping will "very soon" be mounting a challenge to the Conservatives, it has been revealed.

In an ePolitix.com interview, New Party for Britain founder, Mark Adams, indicates that spring elections in Scotland and Wales will see a centre right challenge to the established political parties.

"I'd be surprised if New Party was in a position to stand candidates up and down the country in the local elections, but we are looking at the coming elections in May which aren't just the local elections, but elections in Scotland and Wales, and plan to stand candidates in those elections," he said.

The new party's public face is currently no more than a website, but the former aide to John Major suggests all is about to be revealed with a launch set for mid-February.

"We will register with the Electoral Commission and field candidates and declare who the leaders are and declare who is behind it all in due course," he told this website.

"This clearly means that if it is putting up candidates in May you should expect that launch to be very soon."

There has been media speculation as to party's backers - with some questioning their existence - "wait and see" says Adams.

"So just wait and see who comes out when it's announced," he tells critics.

"In the meantime, the backers behind this organisation are extremely successful business people in their own right, who do not want to play a part in the political debate."

"Of course when the party is up and running, it will have leaders and those leaders will be available for interview and people will be able to see exactly who they are."

The New Party's website pledges "far reaching constitutional changes".

"Let's be radical for a moment about how we would specifically deal with the constitution in Scotland," said Adams.

In a bid to cut bureaucracy and tiers of government, the new group's candidates are set to back the abolition of the Holyrood parliament.

"In our view there is a pertinent question to be asked about whether you need two sets of elected politicians, one in Westminster, one in Edinburgh, determining matters in Scotland, when arguably it would be much more sensible to have those issues dealt with by one set of elected politicians," Adams says.

"I think most people seem to agree that this country has far too many politicians already."

In a move that would mount a challenge to Labour's devolved UK political settlement, New Party chiefs are considering whether to hand responsibilities currently carried out by MSPs in Edinburgh back to Scottish MPs in Westminster.

"This question [of abolishing the Scottish parliament] is pushing what we say much further than what we have so far said, but it is in many ways a natural extension of what we've said. It is certainly one of the options being looked at," Adams said.

Sunday's Herald names Lanark businessman Robert Durward as one the party's founding members.

Durward backs plans to wind up Holyrood and is commissioning polling in the hope of forcing an additional option on May 1 ballot paper "that the Scottish parliament be suspended".