Must not be vague about ethnic identity

UKIP was hit by a fresh race row yesterday after a senior aide to Nigel Farage referred to a British Asian journalist as being ‘of some form of ethnic extraction’.

Gawain Towler, the party’s chief press officer, came under fire after he accidentally texted the description to one of the journalist’s colleagues.

Mr Towler, who is also a lead candidate for the party in next year’s European Parliament elections, insisted he had meant no offence and wearily referred to himself as ‘today’s comedy racist’.

But Tory MPs called for him to apologise.  Nick de Bois, secretary of the backbench 1992 committee, said: ‘There’s no room in any walk of life, let alone politics, for this type of racially insensitive language.’

Fellow Tory Nadhim Zahawi added: ‘It’s outrageous. Nobody in 2013 should use language like this – especially if you want to be seen as fit to run the country.’

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