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Former mayor made 'Auschwitz' post about migrants

Simon Dedman
BBC political reporter, Essex
Colchester City Council Gerard Oxford at a desk. He is wearing a white shirt and glasses. He is to the right of the photograph and is looking directly at the camera and is smiling. He is next to a woman who is wearing a black dress with pink and red roses on it. Colchester City Council
Gerard Oxford says he regrets using the word Auschwitz instead of "detention camp"

A former mayor of Colchester has admitted posting on social media that "we need to create an Auschwitz camp minus the ovens to house illegals".

Gerard Oxford, who said he deleted the post about 20 minutes later and insisted he is not antisemitic, told the BBC: "I am sorry that I made the post now.

"I regret using the word 'Auschwitz'. I should have just said 'detention camp'."

Former MP for Colchester Sir Bob Russell said: "I'm flabbergasted. I know Gerard well. This is completely out of character. That is not the comment of the Gerard Oxford I know."

Sir Bob, a Liberal Democrat who has known Oxford for years, added: "That's not the language we should expect in a democratic society under any circumstances. We all know what Auschwitz was, and to use that word is just not acceptable."

Oxford said: "I've been suggesting for some time we should create detention camps in this country."

He was mayor of Colchester in 2017. Originally a Lib Dem, he left the party two decades ago and was an independent councillor.

Oxford quit Colchester City Council in 2022 after a dispute over disability access at the town hall.

His social media post attracted criticism, with a joint statement from party leaders branding his language "dehumanising".

They said referencing the Holocaust was "deeply wrong and distressing".

"Seeking asylum is a legal right, and Colchester rejects language that spreads hate or fear," the councillors added.

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