A far-right party with one seat in the Dortmund City Council has asked for data on Jews living in the city.

According to the Suddeutsche Zeitung, Die Rechte ("The Right") representative Dennis Giemsch - who has occupied the seat since May - included the request in a list of 25 questions put to the council last Thursday.

One of the questions was: "How many people of the Jewish faith are currently known to be living in Dortmund?" He also asked which parts of town they were living in, and explained that the information would help determine their importance in the city.

Dortmund Mayor Ullrich Sierau turned down the request and called it "inhuman".

"Anyone can recognise the true motivation behind this thoroughly sanctimonious request," said Dieter Graumann, outgoing head of the Central Council of German Jews.