LOCAL councillors have called on the area's UKIP MEP to resign over his "dreadful" comments about "sluts" which overshadowed last week's party conference.
Godfrey Bloom, Member of the European Parliament for Yorkshire and Humber, has been suspended from the party following the remarks, which were made while addressing a "women in politics" event.
Mr Bloom joked that the room was "full of sluts" after female activists he was addressing said they never cleaned behind the fridge.
The joke was well received by the audience but caused outrage when video footage of his remarks was released on Friday.
Mr Bloom later defended the comments, explaining that he used the word to refer to unkempt women, not those of ill repute. But UKIP leader Nigel Farage said Mr Bloom had "gone beyond the pale" and the party removed the whip on Friday.
A disciplinary hearing to decide what further action to take against the MEP is due to take place within the next two weeks.
Councillor Andrew De Freitas, leader of the Liberal Democrat group in North East Lincolnshire, believes Mr Bloom should resign from his position.
He said: "They have done the right thing by removing the whip because his behaviour on occasions leaves an awful lot to be desired. He has made similar statements in the past that were quite disgraceful and it is not the sort of thing you expect from people who represent the public. I think it is dreadful and it doesn't say much for our region.
"People will think we must all be nut cases when we have someone representing us who expresses these sort of views. I know some people treat it as a bit of a joke but I think it's quite serious. What he should do is resign."
Conservative councillor John Fenty agreed that Mr Bloom should "consider his position".
He said: "He is supposed to be an upstanding member of the community representing the country and behaviour like this is untenable."
Labour group leader Chris Shaw said: "The comments he made were really not the comments you would expect from someone in that position."
ON THE WEB: View the video of Godfrey Bloom's remarks at www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk
