Cameron backs Boris in adviser's race-row sacking

He called James McGrath a 'good person' but insisted he had to go for ill-judged remarks which caused 'deep offence'.

Mr McGrath was forced to stand down as director of political strategy to Boris Johnson after he said Caribbean people could return home if they didn't like life under the new London Mayor.

Ditched: Adviser James McGrath (left) and London Mayor Boris Johnson

But while most Tory MPs supported the decision to fire Mr McGrath, there was concern among some that the party had given in to 'politically correct zealots'.

Both Mr Cameron and Mr Johnson insisted that the aide, who has worked for the Tories since 2001, was 'not a racist'. And even the anti-racism campaigner who provoked the controversy appeared yesterday to suggest Mr Johnson had over-reacted.

Mr Cameron said: 'In politics, you have to be responsible for the words that come out of your mouth. It was regrettable, it was something that he shouldn't have said and Boris has acted very quickly and rightly.

'I am sorry for James, I know he is not a racist and he is a good person. But in politics you have to make judgments all the time and inevitably face the consequences if you make a misjudgment. He got himself in a mess.'

The furore erupted after an interview with Mr McGrath by 'citizen journalist' Marc Wadsworth, a Labour activist, appeared on the internet. Although Mr Wadsworth promoted his 'scoop' to papers at the weekend, he was yesterday apparently surprised at its effects.

'It's regrettable that James McGrath has been sacked as a result of his insensitive remarks to me,' he wrote on the Daily Mail website. Elsewhere, he added: 'It both shocked and saddened me that the seasoned political operator's hubris cost him his job.' And: 'I do not think that it was a racist comment but it was ill-informed.'

Mr Johnson has been dogged in the past by racist slurs after calling black children 'piccaninnies' and saying black people had ' watermelon smiles'.

Critics claimed they detected the hand of Conservative HQ in Mr McGrath's sacking. There had been no indication for most of Sunday that his position was under threat but at 10pm it was announced he had quit.

But sources close to Mr Cameron insisted he had nothing to do with the firing. One said: 'There was a dialogue but the decision was down to Boris and Boris alone.'

Some Tories attacked Mr Johnson. Backbench MP Philip Davies said: 'James McGrath shouldn't be hounded from his job by a bunch of extremist PC zealots because they do not like what he said.'

Tory blogger Iain Dale wrote: 'Boris has hung James McGrath out to dry  -  apparently either with the connivance of or at the behest of the party leadership  -  in the most despicable and cowardly manner.

'What he has done is create a rod for his own back. All anyone needs to do in future is to shout "racist" for the most spurious reason and the subject of the accusation will be toast.'

Mr Johnson made clear that Mr McGrath's remarks were 'taken out of context and distorted', but was unrepentant at the sacking.

'He (James) recognises the need for crystal clarity on a vital issue like this,' he said in a statement.

'We both agree he could not stay on as my political adviser without providing ammunition for those who wish to deliberately misrepresent our clear and unambiguous opposition to any racist tendencies.'