Tory councillor called to account over Northerner jibe

Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles will ask Buckinghamshire County Council leader David Shakespeare to explain his comments – which suggested northerners could carry out work undertaken by Romanian migrants – when the pair both attend the same meeting.

Labour MPs have called on Mr Shakespeare, who is the leader of the Tory group on the Local Government Association, to resign after saying at a meeting of the organisation: "The North may replace the Romanians in the cherry orchards. That may be a good thing."

Michael Dugher, Labour MP for Barnsley East, has written to Prime Minister David Cameron to express his anger, denouncing the comments as "out-of-touch, insensitive and insulting".

The Conservatives have distanced themselves from the remarks. When questioned about the matter in the House of Commons, Mr Pickles said: "I will be seeing him first thing on Wednesday morning, and I shall ask him precisely what he meant by that."

However, Cllr Shakespeare has sought to play down the row.

He claimed that his comments were met with laughter and were in response to a joke made by another councillor. "The comment was said in clear jest in response to a joke from a Labour member who said he was going to send all the northern unemployed to Kent," he told his local newspaper.

"So I think somebody who is flogging a soft story as a serious comment must have an ulterior motive, it's that simple."