More footage has emerged of Cllr Jeffrey Tucker’s angry rant at a legal officer following a meeting that approved the merger of back-office services at Newham and Havering councils.

Cllr Tucker refused to apologise for comments to the Recorder saying white Havering Council officers would find it “awkward and uncomfortable” to work with non-white Newham colleagues.

The following outcry prompted a motion at a Havering Council meeting on Wednesday for him to withdraw the statement and apologise, but it did not come to a vote as chaos forced the chairman to abandon the meeting.

The footage shows Cllr Tucker being restrained as he shouts at legal officer Ian Burns, demanding proof of what he said.

Cllr Tucker had previously called Newham streets “filthy” at a cabinet meeting.

The leader of Havering’s Independent Residents’ Group, has been referred to the standards board.

In a letter to the Recorder, he said the comments he made had nothing to do with the “colour of one’s skin” and the comparison of an “English football team and an African football team” was a misunderstood analogy about defence and attack.

Cllr Tucker explained his worries about the merger was three-pronged: that “20 per cent” of Havering’s back office staff would be sacked, that the depleted workforce would spend more time dealing with Newham’s “problems”, and that an alleged pay disparity between the two council officers would cause friction.