There will be relief all round today at Councillor Simon Cooke's decision to stand down as deputy leader of the Conservative group on Bradford Council and deputy leader of the Council itself. His behaviour during a City Hall debate when he made a Nazi salute and called out "Sieg heil!" at the end of a speech by German-born Councillor Lynn Joyce was incredibly stupid for a person in his position.

Few people will believe that he is a racist and few will believe that his comment was made with deliberate malice. It was clearly a moment of madness and he has issued a fulsome apology and behaved honourably by standing down.

His offensive outburst cannot be defended or excused in any way but it is only human nature to wonder whether or not such a fuss would have been made had there not been full council elections looming in a few weeks' time.

Offensive and sometimes downright vicious remarks are often uttered in the heat of debate, as anyone who watches the House of Commons proceedings on satellite TV will testify.

But politics aside, this was a serious lapse of judgement and Councillor Cooke had no choice but to step down. He has played a key role in Bradford's regeneration strategy and for the sake of the city at such a vital time it is useful that he will remain on the Council to maintain continuity until the election.

At that point it will be up to the electorate to decide whether or not Councillor Cooke is a fit representative, but it seems unlikely that he will hold high office in Bradford for a long time to come.