EURO MP Godfrey Bloom, who provoked an outcry over his apparent dismissal of women's rights on his first day on a committee championing them, was unrepentant last night.

And he claimed that far from being censured by his party, the UK Independence Party (UKIP), it is delighted by the storm.

During his first day on the European Parliament's Women's Rights Committee, on Tuesday, Mr Bloom declared he wanted to deal with women's issues because "I just don't think they clean behind the fridge enough" and "I am here to represent Yorkshire women, who always have dinner on the table when you get home. I am going to promote men's rights."

The 54-year-old, from York, further infuriated fellow Euro MPs in Strasbourg and women's rights activists everywhere by claiming that no "small businessman with a brain" would think of employing a woman of childbearing age.

But last night, following a day of constant bombardment by the media, he was unrepentant, dismissing the fridge and dinner comments as "a bit of fun" and bemoaning Strasbourg's poor sense of humour.

"I just can't believe it's blown up into this extraordinary furore," he said. "The first bit about cleaning behind the fridge was obviously a joke. The bit I was in earnest about was the bit about the regulations that come out of Strasbourg and Brussels."

Mr Bloom, who stood twice in the Westminster elections before becoming an MEP, said he believed that much of the legislation designed to enhance women's job prospects, such as paid maternity leave, had the opposite effect.

The research boss at TBO Corporate Benefit Consultants, in York, said something along the lines of the US system, under which small employers are exempt from certain legislation, would be desirable for Europe.

He complained of a lack of business sense among his colleagues.

"I thought if someone like me was on the committee I would bring some serious commercial experience," he said. "There's virtually none as far as I can see."

He said he thought his wife, Katie, a high-profile chartered horse physiotherapist, would be taking his comments in good humour, joking that as a "country bumpkin" she would be most upset by the media intrusion.

He admitted that his own dinner was never waiting for him on the table, adding: "chance would be a fine thing".

Mr Bloom said his remarks had attracted support from both the public and his party, claiming: "The Press office is delighted. We have put employment legislation on the front burner."