A DUDLEY councillor is demanding the resignation of a Labour MEP who said UKIP believed disabled children should be aborted.

Cllr Star Etheridge, who is also UKIP’s national disabilities spokesman, lashed out in response to a tweet by Richard Howitt MEP which also accuses the party of not allowing disabled candidates and believing people with learning difficulties should be put in camps.

Mrs Etheridge, who is a wheelchair user, slammed the comments as repulsive and says Mr Howett, who represents the east of England constituency in Brussels, should be ashamed.

Mrs Etheridge said: “As a disabled person myself who encourages all other disabled people to enter politics, I find Mr Howitt’s repulsive comments deeply insulting and it is clear that he is not fit for office.

“He should hang his head in shame, issue an apology and stand down as an MEP. I am proud to be a UKIP councillor, I am proud to be UKIP’s disabilities spokesman. Mr Howitt’s comments are despicable.”

Mr Howitt, who is vice-chair of the European Parliament All-Party Disability Rights Group of MEPs, is however far from sorry.

When asked for an explanation he responded by sending a copy of an article written for New Statesman in which he claims he was sent a tirade of insults from UKIP supporters after he posted the tweet.

In the article he said: “It seems they've noticed a two week-old comment in which I drew attention to a blog by the protest group Disabled People Against The Cuts, (DPAC), who are by two-thirds victims of the iniquitous bedroom tax, which lambasted unsavoury and offensive statements about disabled people made by UKIP candidates or in UKIP policy.”

He goes on to say he feels obliged to challenge discriminatory actions or behaviour and adds UKIP are “not very nice people.”

Meanwhile Mrs Etheridge’s husband, UKIP MEP Cllr Bill Etheridge, told the News he had been hoping to bump into Mr Howitt in Brussels for a chat about the comments.