Tim Yeo MP dropped by South Suffolk Tories

Conservative MP Tim Yeo is a former environment minister

Conservative MP Tim Yeo has been dropped by his constituency party.

The decision was made by the South Suffolk Conservative Association in a secret ballot on Friday evening.

In a statement, the association said Mr Yeo was "now considering his position and will advise the executive council of his intended course of action".

Last month, Mr Yeo, who has been MP for South Suffolk since 1983, was cleared by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards of breaking lobbying rules.

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Analysis

Andrew SinclairBBC East political correspondent

For the last year or so there's been a growing sense of frustration among Conservatives in South Suffolk.

Constituencies around them had chosen young and dynamic MPs like Therese Coffey, Dan Poulter and Ben Gummer who seemed to spend all their time in the commons championing local causes. Some suggested Mr Yeo, on the other hand, appeared more concerned with his various directorships.

The final straw came with the Sunday Times' undercover sting. Mr Yeo was cleared of any wrong doing this week but the shaky footage of him boasting about his connections did nothing to help.

His local association had hoped he would decide to retire at the next election so that he could make a dignified departure from politics. But he wanted to go on and so very reluctantly they've had to tell him that it's time for change.

The Tory MP was secretly filmed by Sunday Times investigators posing as representatives of a fictional energy company seeking to hire his services.

The paper said he had admitted telling a business associate what to say in evidence to the committee he chaired.

But the watchdog said the newspaper had used "subterfuge, misrepresentation and selective quotation" in its report.

Mr Yeo was one of 25 Conservative MPs who recently warned the prime minister not to ditch the party's environmental agenda.

Labour's shadow cabinet office minister Jon Ashworth said: "Tim Yeo's deselection is another sign that under David Cameron the Conservative Party is reverting to type, with no place for those who thought he meant it when he said, 'vote blue, go green'."

Mr Yeo, a former environment minister, had previously told the BBC that he intended to stand again in 2015.

If he does not accept the decision he can appeal or apply to be the new candidate when the selection process gets under way.

Mr Yeo is yet to comment.