3:56pm UK, Friday December 24, 2010
The Conservatives have "uncharitable instincts" on immigration and their allies in Europe are "quite nutty", the Liberal Democrat Foreign Office minister has told an undercover reporter.
Jeremy Browne told the Daily Telegraph journalist some of the Tories' partners in the European Parliament were "an embarrassment".
Mr Browne is the latest in a string of Lib Dem ministers to be secretly recorded making disparaging remarks about their Conservative allies in the coalition Government.
Speaking to the reporter, who posed as a supporter in his Taunton Deane constituency, Mr Browne said: "The Tories had a very harsh, in my view, immigration policy.
"That's not to say I think that there shouldn't be, you know, a level of immigration which can't be assimilated in society - I'm not in favour of letting rip and letting everyone in - I think we need to have a proper, functioning policy.
Mr Browne is the latest Lib Dem targeted in The Daily Telegraph's investigation
"But the Conservative one I thought was driven by quite a lot of uncharitable instincts.
"I think, with the involvement of the Lib Dems plus the more liberal-minded Tories, we'll end up with a policy which is more enlightened."
When he was asked about the decision by Mr Cameron to ally his party with some far-right parties in Europe, he said: "They [the parties] are quite nutty and that's an embarrassment to them."
The Conservatives left the coalition of centre-right political parties in the European Parliament and went on to join the European Conservatives and Reformists - a coalition of small national parties led by Michal Kaminski, a Polish politician who has been accused of anti-Semitism.
Vince Cable is also in hot water over his secretly recorded comments
Mr Browne, who has been seen as a rising star in the coalition, described running the country with the Conservatives as "uncomfortable".
He added his party was bound to the coalition because if it pulled out, "we'd never be in Government again".
Earlier in the week, Business Secretary Vince Cable was stripped of his responsibilities for media regulation after his private comments were reported in the newspaper.
He was recorded boasting that he had "declared war" on media tycoon Rupert Murdoch and was aiming to block his company's bid for ownership of BSkyB, the parent company of Sky News.
Vince Cable was reprimanded after being recorded.I have declared war on Mr Murdoch and I think we are going to win.
He also said he would "bring the Government down" if he was pushed too far by Conservative colleagues.
Labour leader Ed Miliband this week described the coalition as a "sham" after Lib Dem ministers Scotland Secretary Michael Moore, pensions minister Steve Webb and business minister Ed Davey also had their comments secretly recorded.
Mr Davey said limiting housing benefit would hit the poorest.
Transport minister Norman Baker, David Heath, the deputy Leader of the House and local government minister Andrew Stunell have also had conversations taped.
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