Will ex Crawley council leader be in I'm A Celebrity?

Labour councillor Peter Lamb was tipped to be heading down under for Ant and Dec's jungle-themed reality TV show, according to a Facebook page purporting to be the local authority.

A post about the Labour councillor read: "We can now reveal WHY Peter stepped down as council leader last year...

"He'll be heading into the Jungle this year! Can't wait to see him on a Bushtucker trial!"

Ant and Dec

But he has hit back at these claims, saying he would not "consider moving to Reigate, never mind Australia."

The post was made by the Crawley Borough Council Official Facebook page, which the local authority said has "no association" with the real thing - and has warned people to be careful when interacting with the account.

Cllr Lamb (Image: Crawley Town Council)

The parodic page has made a number of posts mocking the council, with outlandish suggestions of funding allocations and the idea of adding "tigers" to the local ecosystem.

The post about Cllr Lamb was shared to its 1,200 followers.

What Cllr Lamb could look like if he appeared on the show (Image: ITV / Crawley Town Council)

Cllr Lamb stepped down from his post as council leader in 2022 for "a short break from the intense politics" the job brings.

He remained as the councillor for the Northgate and West Green ward just north of the town centre.

The former leader said: "It is quite amazing really. It only took 22 seasons to run out of celebrities.

"As the Labour candidate for Crawley, I would not consider moving to Reigate, never mind Australia."

Crawley Town Hall

But while these posts may appear amusing, the borough council is taking a no-nonsense approach to the account.

A spokesman said: "We're aware a fake Facebook account has been created - Crawley Borough Council Official.

"It has no association with the council. Please be aware when reporting issues or concerns that you are using the correct account."

Another post suggested it had secured millions in government funding for parks and recreation grounds in the area.

"We are very pleased to have been awarded an additional £1.5m from the government to fund much-needed works on Parks within Crawley.

"We will be distributing these funds as outlined below.

"£1.4999m to make Tilgate Park even better, by adding a Tiger to the nature centre, putting up more signs telling you that you can't walk dogs off the lead.

"The remaining £1 will be split between Goffs Park / West Green Park / Northgate Park / Southgate Park / Maidenbower Park / Broadfield Park / Bewbush Park / Cherry Lane / Grattons... you get the idea."

Autumn colours in Tilgate Park

The Argus contacted the owner of the parody page for comment. A spokesman replied: "We are not here to make fun of the hard-working employees of the council but more to make fun of the council as a whole.

"We have reported the council's statement on social media as fake news. We are just giving the people of Crawley what they want... the hilarious truth.

"We invite the council to join us in our hilarity or simply ignore us and let us carry on until Zuckerberg decides to 'Zucker us'."