Vinny Tomlinson said there were certain areas of the city he would not want to work or socialise in because of the colour of his skin.

Councillor Richard Marbrow, Liverpool City Council equality spokesman, said the choice of words were an insult to those who had suffered in South Africa.

He said the city had a proud history of welcoming different races and cultures.

Mr Tomlinson, a civilian communications officer, told the BBC he had chosen the word apartheid carefully.

There is still work to be done, but we are determined to banish racial prejudice and ensure people from all races are included in life in Liverpool Councillor Richard Marbrow

"Apartheid is an emotive word, by apartheid I mean the separate development of races," he said.

"The reality is that black people are being excluded."

Mr Tomlinson said ethnic data showed black people were still more likely than white people to be stopped by police, arrested, convicted or given longer prison sentences.

He added: "Liverpool has its own idiosyncrasies in terms of race."

Major civic events such as Slavery Remembrance Day and Black History Month celebrate the contribution of the Black Community in Liverpool, the council said.

Mr Marbrow said the city had made "great strides in promoting race equality and celebrating diversity".

"Comparing race relations in Liverpool with the apartheid regime which led to the torture and death of many thousands of people in South Africa is an insult to their memory, a complete distortion of the truth and not at all helpful to building community relations," said Mr Marbrow.

"We work closely with our partners in the police to tackle issues such as racial harassment and have invested 60% more money into directly tackling the issue.