A Liberal Democrat candidate is calling on her Tory rival to disown racist comments from a Tory councillor.

Jemma Joy, Lib Dem candidate for Middlesbrough South & East Cleveland, is very concerned about reports in the Guardian newspaper that Hutton councillor Malcolm Griffiths endorsed racist posts on Facebook.

Jemma is asking Conservative candidate Simon Clarke to disassociate himself from the comments and to call on Cllr Griffiths to resign from the council.

Jemma said:

“Racism has no place in politics and no place in our council. If the reports in the Guardian are found to be true, Simon Clarke needs to give a very clear lead and call on Cllr Griffiths to resign immediately.”