Former MP Paul Clark will fight to regain the Gillingham and Rainham seat at the next general election.

Mr Clark (pictured left) was elected in a ballot of all local party members at the Labour headquarters in Twydall on Friday night.

He was MP for the constituency from 1997 to 2010, winning three successive general elections.

During that time he held a number of government posts including treasury bench whip and two appointments as Transport Minister.

Since leaving parliament after the 2010 election, when he was defeated by Conservative Rehman Chishti, he has established his own consultancy practice dealing with transport and regeneration and community development issues.

Mr Clark is chair of Medway Citizens Advice, governor at Brompton Academy and Woodlands Primary, director and trustee at the Sunlight Centre in Richmond Road, president of the Medway Dragons and patron of Danny’s Angels, a local charity raising money for CLIC Sargent.

fter being selected, Mr Clark said: “Since the last election, I have continued to work and live in Gillingham, seeing for myself very clearly the effects of this double dip recession and the struggle for so many local hard-working families as the coalition government’s policies bite hard into the pockets of those who can least afford it.

"I know that we have a lot of work to do, but people know my commitment to my home towns of Gillingham and Rainham and people know that I am not someone to be half-hearted or abandon ship halfway through.

Mr Clark beat two other candidates on the final shortlist: Francis Rehal, from Faversham, and Zaheer Ahmad MBE from Barking, Essex.

Cllr Vince Maple (pictured right), leader of Medway Labour group on Medway Council, congratulated Mr Clark.

He said: “He has got an outstanding track record of representing Gillingham and Rainham residents.

“I look forward to working with him to bring real change to Westminster and Gun Wharf as Medway residents deserve better representation.”