PVV councillor quits after saying ‘put out fires at refugee centres with petrol’

A councillor for the anti-immigration PVV in the Groningen town of Delfzijl has stepped down after being heavily criticised for saying on Facebook that fires at refugee centres should be put out with petrol.

Emil Smeding responded to an article on the website of local broadcaster RTV Noord about a fire in the big refugee centre in Ter Appel. ‘Put it out with petrol,’ Smeding said, followed by an angry emoji.

RTV Noord said it had removed the message ‘as we do with other messages with the same sentiment’.

Smeding, the only PVV councillor in the coastal town, told the broadcaster later in a reaction: ‘I did not see anything wrong with it because I did not attack anyone personally. In addition, Facebook is such as rubbish medium.’

He has since apologised, RTV Noord said.

Next week councillors in Delfzijl are due to discuss a covenant in which they pledge to treat each other with respect and integrity. It was drawn up after a row in which a VVD councillor called another a nazi.

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