The Tories and Brexit Party have just entered into their first pact wresting control of Hartlepool council from Labour.

It comes despite the Tories vehemently ruling out any election deal at a national level.

Nine Independent Hartlepool councillors have defected to The Brexit Party and agreed to form a pro-Brexit coalition with three local Tories in a bid to take control of the town from Labour .

The seaside town voted overwhelming in favour of Brexit in 2016 with 69.6% backing the leave vote in the EU referendum.

Brexit Party chair Richard Tice said: "I can reveal today that nine councillors from different parties have joined the Brexit Party and agreed to work with three Tories to secure a pro-Brexit majority for the town."

Nationally the Tories have so far downplayed talk of an election pact.

Nigel Farage offered the Tories an deal if they promised to deliver a "clean-break Brexit" saying that "together we would be unstoppable".

Last week the chancellor refused five times to rule out such an agreement when asked on the Andrew Marr show.

But Downing Street and the Tories have tried to scotch the rumours. 

A senior Conservative source said: "Neither Nigel Farage nor Arron Banks are fit and proper persons and they should never be allowed anywhere near Government."

Downing Street also moved to publicly slap down Mr Farage, telling the Mirror Mr Johnson ruled out any future election pact with the Brexit Party. A No10 spokeswoman told us: "[The] PM [has] been clear – no pact. Nothing has changed on this."

Separately, a spokesman for the Prime Minister later added: "The Prime Minister will not be doing deal with Nigel Farage."

Mr Farage hit back at the snub and warned his new Brexit party could be Mr Johnson’s “best friends or their worst enemies”.

Mr Farage added: "If Boris Johnson decides to go for clean-break Brexit then his strength and my strength would be unstoppable. He could get Brexit done, beat Corbyn and be a hero — what's not to like?"

The party leader insisted that he was not interested in joining a Tory government.

He told the BBC's Andrew Neil show

"Can't we see that actually if we get a Labour government we're not going to get a meaningful Brexit of any kind at all? This is big chance to unite the Leave vote," he said.

"We've got a solution here."

A YouGov poll showed six in ten Tory voters, and seven in ten Brexit Party voters, said they back an election deal.

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