France's National Front party founder Jean-Marie Le Pen says he is "ashamed" his daughter - current FN leader Marine - still bears his surname.

Amid a growing feud, Mr Le Pen said he hoped she "would get married as quickly as possible so as to change her name".

He added he would not support Marine in presidential elections in 2017.

His remarks came after the far-right party suspended Mr Le Pen, 86, after he repeated his view that the Holocaust was "a detail of history".

Marine Le Pen, 46, has been trying to steer the National Front (FN) away from its racist and anti-Semitic past.

Ms Le Pen's view is that FN's growth is being held back by memories of what it used to be, and that to move to the next level it must cut itself free from its past, the BBC's Hugh Schofield in Paris reports.

'Felony'

Speaking to France's Europe 1 radio, Mr Le Pen said: "I was hoping that the president of the National Front would get married as quickly as possible so as to change her name.

"Because I'm ashamed that she has the same surname as me."

And asked if he would still be supporting his daughter in the presidential elections, Mr Le Pen answered: "Not for the moment."

Mr Le Pen has been suspended but not dismissed by the party - a decision he described as a "felony".

An extraordinary party congress is expected to be held within three months aimed at ending the function of honorary president - which Mr Le Pen has been holding since stepping down as leader in 2011.

Some commentators have suggested he could be more of a risk outside of the party than if he were contained within it.

Mr Le Pen still holds a seat in the European Parliament and continues his post as regional councillor in the south of France.
(BBC)