A Board of Deputies representative who was accused of making racist comments has resigned from his position.

Board President Vivian Wineman said he “utterly condemned and deplored” the remarks made by Antony Cohen, a deputy for the Leeds Jewish Representative Council.

“We emphasise that his views have absolutely no place at the Board of Deputies and note that he was speaking without the authority of his constituency.”

At a Board plenary meeting earlier this month, Mr Cohen told deputies: “I’m going to lay all my cards on the table, I don’t care about any Palestinians, I only care about the Jewish people in this country and in Israel. We are facing a tremendous danger.”

The remark prompted 10 deputies to file a code of conduct complaint against him for racism and discrimination.