A STOURPORT councillor has resigned following Islamophobic remarks posted on his Twitter account.
Gary Talbot, who was a Conservative member of Stourport Town Council, described Islam as the "enemy within England" in a Tweet last year.
The former Stourport mayor, who has now deleted his social media accounts, is no longer a councillor or a member of Wyre Forest Conservatives.
In one Tweet, Mr Talbot said: "Islam is the enemy within England, and it will have to be defeated from within by England, by the English."
In another post in 2019, he wrote: "Now that we've seen off Europe, it's time to see off Islam and re-establish Great Britain's laws, religions, customs and history."
Mr Talbot told The Shuttle: "If those comments have offended anybody then I apologise."
Hi @Conservatives, Gary Talbot was elected as a Conservative Party councillor in the Central Ward of Stourport-On-Severn in 2019. He has made numerous Islamophobic remarks. It appears he is still a councillor and a member of your party. What action will be taken to address this? pic.twitter.com/CZmx0AhIRv
— Taj Ali (@Taj_Ali1) April 11, 2022
On Monday (April 11), Mr Talbot responded to a tweet about the sister of murdered primary school teacher Sabina Nessa, who claimed her family would have been treated better if they were a "normal British white family."
A Twitter user named Jen K wrote: “I’m sorry but I’m getting really sick of this. Sabina Nessa’s sister has come out and said there would have been more attention in her case if it had been a white person. I’m sorry but this is getting beyond a joke. Do we have to start apologising for being white now".
Mr Talbot wrote in response: “The time is coming when an almighty clear out of bad rubbish is going to take place in England.”
Responding to a concerned Twitter user who asked Wyre Forest Conservatives if they were going to take any action over Mr Talbot's comments, the group said: "This was brought to our attention today and this individual was suspended immediately from the Party and the procedure to expel him has commenced".
This was brought to our attention today and this individual was suspended immediately from the Party and the procedure to expel him has commenced
— Wyre Forest Conservatives (@WFConservative) April 12, 2022
Mr Talbot, a 60-year-old retired postman, has said he regrets making the comments on Twitter and that he's resigned as a councillor and as a Tory.
He said: "I'm resigning because that's the decent thing to do.
"I'm not Islamophobic - I can get on with everybody.
"I moved myself into a situation where I made one or two silly comments.
"I'm paying the penalty for it".
A spokesperson for Stourport Town Council said they were unaware of the comments and will be investigating further.
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