LONDON, April 28: England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) member Des Wilson has resigned over the England cricket team's proposed October tour of Zimbabwe, British newspapers reported on Wednesday.

England's tour of the southern African nation has been surrounded by controversy with the ECB under political pressure to withdraw because of concerns over the government of President Robert Mugabe.

In a letter to ECB chairman David Morgan, Wilson, who presented a report to the board earlier this year saying moral considerations should be taken into account before touring, said he could no longer share the board's collective responsibility should they decide to tour.

"My differences lie with where we go from here," Wilson wrote in the letter that was reprinted in the Guardian on Wednesday. "I do not claim superiority of judgement or greater moral virtue - we just differ, but the differences are so profound that my position is I believe untenable.

"I believe the ECB should make such a tour only under protest and ...in the longer term I believe it should campaign for change within the ICC. "The ECB is alas returning to business as usual."

ECB chairman Morgan was quoted in the Daily Telegraph as accepting Wilson's resignation. "It is with regret that I have accepted Des Wilson's resignation from the board of the ECB and respect the strength of his feelings on the issues surrounding the Zimbabwe tour," Morgan said.

"Clearly there is a difference of opinion between Des and most other members of the board over our strategy towards the Zimbabwe tour." The International Cricket Council (ICC) has threatened international suspension and a $2 million fine for teams who refuse to tour unless there are either legitimate safety or security concerns or they are asked not to go by their governments.

The British government has said that the final decision will be left to the ECB, who appear likely to fulfil their tour obligations. -Reuters