Voters in Wimbledon Park will be asked to elect a new councillor at the same time as deciding who will be London’s Mayor.

Councillor Tariq Lord Ahmad, who has represented the Merton Council ward since 2002, exclusively revealed to the Wimbledon Guardian that he will resign his seat.

The move will trigger a by-election to be held on Thursday, May 3 – the same day as voters across London go to the polls to elect its mayor and London Assembly members.

The former vice-chairman of the Conservative party said he felt unable to fully commit to his council responsibilities since being appointed as a member of the House of Lords in January 2011.

Lord Ahmad was two hours late for this month’s crucial annual budget meeting at the council chamber because he also had to be in the House of Lords to vote for a key piece of Government legislation.

He explained he also made the decisions for family reasons as his wife is also due to give birth within the next few days.

He said: “I was born and raised in Wimbledon Park and being elected as a councillor was the proudest moment of my life.

“But being a councillor is serious work and there is no longer enough time to do that properly while trying to raise a family while juggling my duties in the Lords.

“I believe it’s the right decision at the right time.”

The Wimbledon Park ward, for which three councillors are elected every four years, has become a stronghold for Merton’s Conservatives in recent years.

It is understood the Conservatives will announce their Wimbledon Park candidate as Linda Taylor, the chairman of Go South So Task Force which lobbies for south London to get more benefits from this year’s Olympic Games.

More recently, Ms Taylor has also campaigned against the closure of the Vineyard Hill GP surgery, in Vineyard Hill Road, which is set to lose a huge chunk of its funding from Sutton and Merton PCT.