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A student dinner that caused alarm and condemnation after some guests appeared to sing along to a Nazi marching tune was attended by the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Warwickshire.
According to the PCC’s office, Philip Seccombe paid to attend the University of Warwick Conservative Association’s dinner on 15 June in a personal capacity and not through his PCC role, in which he serves as a Tory.
The office confirmed his attendance in a log of responses to Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, adding Mr Seccombe attended only the dinner portion of the occasion and left thereafter.
Following video being shared on social media last month that purported to show people at the off-campus event singing and dancing to World War Two era song Erika, the university pledged an investigation, calling the actions of some students “reprehensible”.
The University of Warwick has since suspended the Conservative Association.
Leaders from The Union of Jewish Students have described the gathering’s “blatant and unchallenged support for Nazism” as “utterly abhorrent”.
“Glorification of the Nazis has no place in our society,” they stated in June, adding “it is in no way acceptable and must be widely condemned.”
The song was composed in 1930 by Herms Niel, who became a troop leader in the Nazi’s paramilitary wing.
The University of Warwick Conservative Association told the BBC last month the song was requested by a lone member and was not part of the pre-planned music selection for the event.
They said the individual who requested it, and another person who was not a member of the group, would be barred from future events.
The association claimed most attendees were unaware of the origins or connotations of the song.
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