But he said he stands by his view that there is a ‘small minority who hold xenophobic views’ in the island.
The story about Guernsey’s refusal to accept refugees featured prominently in national and international news media over the weekend, prompting Deputy Le Tocq to clarify his position on Sunday.
He apologised to islanders ‘who have, rightly, been angered by the way those comments have been presented’.
In his initial statement, Deputy Le Tocq gave a number of reasons for the decision not to accept refugees, including a lack of infrastructure and support services to help them.
But in his statement on Sunay, Deputy Le Tocq said: ‘The majority of people in Guernsey that I have had contact with on this issue have strongly supported the idea of trying to find a way of assisting with resettlement.
He said the island was clearly not a xenophobic or Islamophobic community and his comments had been taken out of context.
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