AN Isleworth man who destroyed a £150,000 statue of Margaret Thatcher with a metal pole is hoping to overturn his conviction on a point of law.

Paul Kelleher, 38, of Loring Road, was denied leave to appeal to the Law Lords on Monday but was given leave to petition the House of Lords instead.

Lord Justice Mantell, Mr Justice Elias and Mr Justice Jack certified that a point of law enabled him to do so, namely because the judge in the initial case had directed the jury to a conviction.

Mr Kelleher was convicted of criminal damage at Southwark Crown Court, after he attacked the marble statue while it was on display at London's Guildhall on July 3, 2004.

He first attempted to smash the statue with a wooden cricket bat but when this failed he grabbed a metal pole from a crowd barrier.

It was estimated that the statue would cost £10,000 to repair, but this was seen as too excessive and it remains headless.

Mr Kelleher served 42 days of his three month sentence for the incident, which was widely reported in the national press after Kelleher described his actions as an attack on "the ill's of the world's political system."