Reform MP defends 'misogynistic' posts by Makerfield candidate branding Carol Vorderman comments 'inappropriate'
The TV star said she 'wouldn't let him in my house if he was a local plumber in my area' after Robert Kenyon's comments about women, including targeting Ms Vorderman, were revealed.
A Reform UK MP has hit out at comments made by Carol Vorderman about his party’s Makerfield candidate after calling out a string of now-deleted online posts from the prospective MP that she branded a 'cowardly misogynist'.
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Vorderman hit out at Reform UK on Sunday over what she describes as 'disgusting online abuse' after 'misogynistic' comments allegedly posted by the Makerfield by-election candidate surfaced online.
Online messages posted from a now-deleted X account, allegedly one of two belonging to Makerfield candidate Robert Kenyon, were unearthed by campaign group Hope Not Hate.
They showed that Mr Kenyon responded on Christmas Eve 2021 to another person’s post including graphic sexual language about the presenter who made her name as the maths expert on Channel 4’s Countdown.
Alongside a thumbs up and a laughing emoji, the plumber wrote: “He’s only saying what we’re all thinking.”
Now, Reform UK has defended the posts uploaded by the prospective politician, with MP Danny Kruger seeking to defend what he called “private” comments of “an ordinary man”.
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Robert Kenyon, a local plumber who is Reform UK's pick to take on Andy Burnham in the now-vacant seat, was seen to agree with several misogynistic online posts from his now-deleted X account, it's been alleged.
Kenyon was reportedly in possession of two separate X accounts, one of which was suspended by the platform and the other deleted, with campaign group Hope Not Hate unearthing a slew of "misogynistic" posts and comments dating back several years.
Posting to Instagram, Carol Vorderman showed screenshots of one particular sexually explicit remark about conducting sex acts on the presenter.
Other posts screenshotted from the account include offensive jokes about female rugby players - which led to the account being blocked by the Sky Sports Rugby League - as well as other posts likening Australians to Nazis.
In response, Reform UK MP Mr Kruger said: “The great challenge for social media for private people is that they use it as if they are chatting to their friends in the park.
“Clearly an inappropriate thing to say publicly.
“I’m not going to judge people for their what are essentially regarded at the time and intended as private conversations.”
"It's a torrent of abusive and vile language. Nobody knows why his X account was suspended. X has a very low bar for suspension, and the public should know and Reform should tell us why his account was suspended," she said in the video posted on Saturday.
"What were his actions for this to have happened?"
The account allegedly belonging to Nigel Farage's candidate was also seen to share posts by a Holocaust denier as well as spreading Covid misinformation online.
After the posts to Vorderman initially came to light, Reform said it stood by Mr Kenyon, claiming his lack of "polish" is what would make him an effective MP.
In December 2021, Mr Kenyon allegedly supported a message sent by a third party to Vorderman that discussed performing a sexual act on her.
The original tweet drew criticism from another user on X who said: “If you’re prepared to put this on a public forum, I would suggest that your computer drive probably needs checking.”
In response, Mr Kenyon wrote: “He’s only saying what we’re all thinking,” followed by a laughing and thumbs -up emoji.
Ms Vorderman later remarked: "Fundamentally, Rob Kenyon is a misogynist".
"I wouldn't let him in my house if he was a local plumber in my area, not with what he's been posting online. There is always a pattern," she added.
Replying to one particular comment on how Covid vaccines “help a lot”, the account replied “What a load of c***”, and compared Covid vaccination policies in Australia to Nazism.
“It’s a torrent of abusive and vile language. Nobody knows why his X account was suspended. X has a very low bar for suspension, and the public should know, and Reform should tell us why his account was suspended. What were his actions for this to have happened?"
"Last year, the Victim's Commissioner said 'misogyny normalises violence against women and girls, normalises illegal harms such as harassment, abuse and stalking. And these harms manifest in both online and offline spaces".
"He's not just being a lad, he's being a disgusting online abuser who became a Reform councillor three weeks ago”.
"If anyone's seriously thinking that Reform stands for the safety of women, then please think again. They stand for reducing women’s rights and safety".
In a separate post seen by The Telegraph, he joked about female rugby players being able to “handle their knockers”.
He also criticised the Labour Party in a slur about trans people, and in another, he dismissed climate change as a “middle-class” problem.