People who cannot speak English have been warned they could be left in a “sub-class” of society by a former leader of Bradford Council, Eric Pickles.

The outspoken Communities Secretary said those without a grasp of the native language would be “stuck in a ghetto”.

Mr Pickles was accused of using insensitive language by Labour’s Bradford Council leader Ian Greenwood, while Lib Dem MP David Ward said he was “missing the point”.

Last month it was revealed that almost 140 different languages were the mother tongues of Bradford primary school children, with 43 per cent of pupils speaking English as a second language.

In an interview with the MPs’ magazine The House, Mr Pickles pointed to a new £10 million grant to “actively encourage” the teaching of English.

He said: “In terms of wanting people, encouraging people, to be part of British society, they can’t do that unless they have more than an understanding of English.

“If we don’t get our resident population with an understanding of English, then they become a sub-class that is virtually unemployable or are stuck in a ghetto. We should not be turning people out of our schools who aren’t able to speak English like a native.”

Mr Ward, the Liberal Democrat MP for Bradford East, took issue with the comments, saying the important factor was their ability in their chosen language, not whether they spoke English.

He said: “I’ve heard this one so many times. What people like Eric don’t seem to understand is that the issue is not whether you come from a family that speaks English, it’s the quality of language.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s Chinese, Urdu or Punjabi – it really doesn’t matter. What is important is the quality.

“Those who are struggling most in our schools are white working-class boys.”

Coun Greenwood said his party had pledged to ensure schoolchildren reached a decent level of English in its Bradford election manifesto.

He said it was important for young people to succeed if they could communicate with others in English, but he stressed: “I don’t think people need to be lectured, and I don’t like the words ‘sub-class’ and ‘ghetto’.”

In the interview, Mr Pickles also recalled being taken aback by a racist message when growing up in Bradford.

He said: “I can remember asking my mum why there was a sign up in a shop that said ‘no blacks in here’ or something to that effect in Bradford, when I was not very old at all.

“It is quite right that we have introduced laws to outlaw that kind of thing. Nobody should feel frightened in the United Kingdom. People should feel safe in their beds, they should feel comfortable in their neighbourhoods. These dreadful extremists want to create fear in the minds of the community.”