Greg Stone was forced to resign today as the Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidate for Newcastle East after the offensive comments he made.

Dominic Llewellyn, Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Newcastle East, said: "His behaviour is exactly why people are turned off by politics and that is why he had to go. There should be no place in politics for the types of comment which he made.

"Whilst it was the right decision it was disappointing that the Lib Dems did not act sooner; they should have acted immediately yet they only acted when articles like this were published. It was also disappointing that a large number of his colleagues when asked refused to condemn his comments, including the Lib Dem Parliamentary Candidates in Newcastle Central and Newcastle North.

"The question now for the Lib Dems is can and should Greg Stone remain as a City Councillor for North Heaton? It will be interesting to see whether he is on the ballot paper at the time of Newcastle City Council elections on 6th May which is the day which many predict will be when the General Election is fought. Surely if Greg Stone isn't fit to be a Parliamentary Candidate, then he isn't fit to be a City Councillor?

"I am working hard for local residents on the issues they care about and I'm looking forward to meeting many more of them in the next few months."