A TORY councillor has come under fire for making an offensive joke about the Rape allegations by celebrity Katie Price.

Tony Cox, who represents West Shoebury, made the joke on social networking website Twitter, claiming the allegations are false.

Price, also known as Jordan, claims she was raped by an unnamed celebrity.

His comments incensed Shoebury resident Stuart Campling who wrote to the Echo saying: “As a figure in the public eye, he should be more careful how he conducts himself. I shall also contact the local Shoebury Conservative Party for their views as I believe this type of posting does not reflect the party in a good light.

“Rape is a serious subject and should not be joked about. ”

Mr Cox said he was trying to make a serious comment about rape.

He said: “The alleged rape was supposed to have happened years ago, but has only come into the spotlight as Katie embarks on a charm offensive following the well- publicised ending of her marriage to Peter Andre.

“Secondly, this has the hallmarks of the John Leslie incident some years back when Ulrika Johnsson made a rape allegation.

“Thirdly, Katie Price is doing no favours to those who have genuinely been victims of rape in encouraging them to come forward, report the incident to the police and bring those guilty to justice.

“The police at present find it very difficult to take rape cases through the courts and gain a successful conviction. At present, less than half of rape cases result in a successful conviction.”

Southend Council leader Nigel Holdcroft defended Mr Cox.

He said: “It’s unfortunate if it has been misinterpreted by some people, but I think it was making a serious point.

“Celebrities who make this sort of allegation can undermine those who really have a serious problem on this issue. It was put in a language familiar to those people who use this type of social networking site.”