A number of the people who disrupted a meeting about refugees in the Noord-Brabant town of Steenberg on Wednesday night were outsiders, the town’s mayor has told Radio 1.

‘I don’t know all my inhabitants but I think some of them were from elsewhere,’ Joseph Vos told the broadcaster. In addition, the negative mood in the sports hall was partly deliberately created, Vos said.

Both the mayor and one woman who spoke in favour of refugees were drowned out by parts of the crowd who hurled insults and took part in anti-asylum seeker chants.

‘This influenced the mood and I cannot rule out other people being too scared to speak,’ Vos said.

The mayor and police had brought in emergency powers ahead of the meeting following reports that Feyenoord football hooligans were planning to attend the meeting and cause trouble.