Elliott Fountain used to be Boston Councillor
Elliott Fountain used to be Boston Councillor

In what could yet be a sign that the English Defence League is falling apart at the seams, a complete unknown has come from nowhere to claim he is the new leader of the far-right group.

A former Lincolnshire councillor named Elliott Fountain took to Twitter to announce he was "proud" to be taking on the role which Tommy Robinson dramatically vacated last week.

Fountain issued the tweet yesterday and was promptly ridiculed by other EDL followers, who dismissed the claim as totally bogus.

A source inside the group, which claims it opposes radical Islam, told IBTimes UK: "This is total rubbish. There's lots of people who would like to announce themselves, but nobody's heard of this guy.

"He's not well known at all by many people in the English Defence League, if he is even is properly in it."

The EDL has been rocked by the resignations of Robinson and deputy leader Kevin Carroll. Their unexpected departures left a group which was chaotically organised even with Robinson in charge looking more rudderless than ever.

Fountain's leadership claim also flew in the face of steps already taken by the EDL to steady the ship and try to restore a semblence of order.

Last week, a meeting of the group's Regional Organisers (RO) ended with the selection of a new chairman named Tim Ablitt. A former organiser for the EDL's Devon division, Ablitt became chairman of a (RO) committee which will decide group matters by majority voting.

IBTimes UK was told: "Tommy always had the final say, but everything now will be done on a vote.Only time will tell if it works."

Fountain's personal credentials for taking on a leadership position in the country's most controversial street protest movement are not supported by his political record, either.

He used to be a councillor for the English Democrats on Boston Borough Council - but was booted out of Town Hall for failing to turn up to more than two meetings between January and July.

While absent from his council role, Fountain also handed in a £7,000 expenses claim, local media reported. A frivolous-looking bid to get elected as Lincolnshire's first-ever police commissioner ended in predictable failure last year.

Robinson walked away from the EDL claiming it had been hijacked by "Nazi" extremists. A demonstration in Bradford last weekend drew less than 1,000 supporters.