The Conservative leader, Mr William Hague, yesterday defended hardline comments on asylum-seekers and rejected a charge from a black bishop that he was courting votes from racists.
With the local elections starting tomorrow, Mr Hague remained defiant after warning at the weekend that the racist National Front would see a rise in support unless the issue of asylum was tackled.
"I've been very clear about what I've been saying. Actually the people I've met around the country know exactly what I'm saying and they don't have xenophobic motives," he said. The Bishop of Croydon, the Right Rev Wilfred Wood, had accused Mr Hague of pandering to racism and courting "cheap votes from racists".
Mr Hague's hardline policies have led the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Mr Charles Kennedy, to accuse him of "pandering to prejudice". The campaign for tomorrow's Romsey by-election formed the backdrop for the war of words between Mr Hague and Mr Kennedy over asylum-seekers. On a campaign visit to the area, Mr Hague defended his policies of being tougher on asylum-seekers and accused Mr Kennedy of leading his party to the "extreme fringes of the political debate".
In return, Mr Kennedy accused Mr Hague of being "immature and dangerous" and indulging in "irresponsible politics".
On asylum-seekers, Mr Hague accused the Liberals of "descending into gutter politics by referring both the Labour and Conservative parties to the Commission for Racial Equality".