Defence secretary and Kent MP Michael Fallon has paid compensation and apologised to an Islamic cleric who he wrongly claimed was a supporter of Isis.

Mr Fallon had made the claim during an interview with the BBC last month on the Today programme.

In a statement on his website, Mr Fallon says he accepts that the claim was entirely untrue.

He said: “When I did this I knew that it had been said on a BBC Television programme some weeks earlier but I was unaware that the BBC had corrected that statement and had apologised to you.

"Had I known of that correction and apology I would not have repeated the statement.”

"I repeat my apology for the error that I made and for the distress that it caused to you and your family" - Michael Fallon to the cleric

He goes on to say: “I was made aware of the BBC’s correction and apology a few hours after the broadcast and immediately issued a statement in an effort to put the record straight.”

The Imam was at the centre of a row during the campaign for the London Mayor as Conservatives sought to raise questions about the judgement of the Labour candidate Sadiq Khan.

Mr Fallon says he accepts that “you are entirely opposed to Daesh/Islamic State, that you regard it as incompatible with your religious and moral beliefs, and that you have spoken out publicly against it.”

The statement ends: “I repeat my apology for the error that I made and for the distress that it caused to you and your family.

"In recognition of that distress I have agreed to make a payment of compensation and to meet your reasonable legal costs.”