A Labour council leader has been suspended from the party after he referred to grooming gang victims as “poor white trash from Rotherham”.

Dennis Jones, Peterborough’s Labour leader who represents the Dogsthorpe ward has resigned from the party and has since “apologised wholeheartedly for the language”.

On 3 September Daisy Blakemore-Creedon, an Independent Peterborough city councillor, shared on social media a screenshot of an exchange between her and Jones from 8 August in which he made the comment.

A Peterborough City Council spokesperson said: “A formal complaint has been received by the council in relation to this and we are now considering its contents.”

“We were having a civil and respectful exchange, until that moment,” Blakemore-Creedon told the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

She added: “His words took me aback, and I was honestly too stunned to respond in the moment. It felt like the air had been sucked out of the conversation.

“Since sharing this last night, I have had victims reach out to me directly. Their voices, their pain, and their courage confirm what I knew deep down: speaking out was the right thing to do.

“This isn’t about point-scoring or politics, it’s about people’s safety, dignity, and lived experiences. And no-one should ever feel silenced when those values are dismissed so casually.”

Jones said: “With regard to the topic discussed, let me be absolutely clear: vile perpetrators of sexual abuse must face the full force of the law, and we must all continue to fight for victims of such abhorrent crimes to get the justice they deserve.

“In trying to assert this view, I used language which some who wrongly dismiss or choose to ignore such evil crimes commonly use to minimise such criminality.

“In doing so, I was intending to discredit this completely wrong characterisation and highlight the need to stand up for victims of such crimes.

“I apologise wholeheartedly for some of the language used in these messages, which was clearly inappropriate, and for any offence I may have caused as a result.”

Wayne Fitzgerald, the Conservative group leader on Peterborough City Council, said: “Calling white working class girls white trash is deeply offensive and unacceptable.”

A Labour Party spokesperson said: “The Labour Party expects the highest standards from our members and our elected representatives.

“The language used here was inappropriate and swift action has been taken, in line with our rules and procedures. We cannot comment further while an investigation is ongoing.”