Nigel Farage has said he feels sorry for a UKIP candidate who was forced to step down after being recorded using derogatory terms about homosexuals and Chinese people.
The politician described Kerry Smith, a parliamentary hopeful in one of UKIP's strongest constituencies, as a "rough diamond" who fell victim to London snobbery over colloquial language.
Mr Smith was taped in a phone call where he labelled gay party members as "poofters" and referred to someone as a "Chinky bird". The Essex councillor also joked about embarking on a "peasant hunt" by shooting people in Chigwell.
Even though the UKIP leader insisted his former colleague did not use the terms maliciously, he conceded Mr Smith was "not suitable to be a parliamentary candidate" for South Basildon and East Thurrock.
In an LBC interview, Mr Farage said: "I'm a bit sad, because Kerry Smith is a rough diamond. He's a council house boy from the East End of London, left school early and talks and speaks in a way that a lot of people from that background do.
"Even the 'poofter' comment - the next sentence he was saying how good a candidate was, and the fact he was gay would be an asset to the party.
"Kerry himself said that he used language that Del Boy used to use on Only Fools and Horses, and nobody objected then."
Mr Farage also claimed that "a lot of people" would use the word "Chinky", yet stressed he had never used the term himself.
Pressed on the issue, he asked: "If you and your mates are going out for a Chinese, what would you say you were going for?"
Mr Smith stood down as a parliamentary candidate earlier in December, and has since resigned as a UKIP member.
In light of the controversy, Mr Farage conceded UKIP does "have people who do things and say things that are wrong".
However, he insisted they only amounted to a small proportion of UKIP candidates, adding: "So do the other parties as well. We do not have a monopoly on stupidity, I promise you."
Mr Farage himself recently made headlines after appearing to blame immigration for traffic on the M4. During the interview, he claimed this remark was intended as a joke.
"I've learnt something. Never joke. There's no point, is there? No one's got a sense of humour anymore," he added.
John Healey, a Labour MP, said: "It tells you all you need to know about Nigel Farage: that he is defending words which the vast majority of people find offensive, while also suggesting that people living in council housing are racist.
"It's more proof that UKIP is a nasty party with no understanding of, and nothing to offer to, the people they want to represent. They are completely out of touch with modern Britain."
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