Labour MP Sorry For 'Coloured Skin' Comments

A Labour MP has apologised after saying in a radio interview that the only people with "coloured skin" in his constituency "run takeaways".

Wayne David was asked how much of an issue immigration is in his Caerphilly constituency in terms of the number of people coming in from abroad.

He replied: "Well in terms of numbers it's not an issue.

"I mean the only people who have coloured skin, if you like, are people who run takeaways.

"There are some workers who are migrant workers from the rest of the European Union but the numbers are relatively small.

"But nevertheless people are concerned about it."

On Friday, he tweeted an apology for his comments, which were made during the BBC Radio Wales discussion.

He wrote: "I apologise for any offence I may have caused for remarks on radio yesterday.

"Ethnic minorities play a vitally important role in our society.

"Now more than ever, it is vitally important to combat racism in Caerphilly Borough and elsewhere."

There is heightened concern over racism in the wake of the UK's vote to leave the European Union.

The Leave campaign focused on immigration.

Since the vote, the number of hate crime incidents reported to a national crime reporting website has been five times the typical weekly level.