Reform UK's by-election candidate Robert Kenyon has refused to apologise to Carol Vorderman after making lewd remarks about the former Countdown star. Instead, he claimed that no offence was intended.
Background of the Controversy
Earlier this week, Carol Vorderman demanded an apology from Kenyon, who is challenging Labour's Andy Burnham in the Makerfield by-election. The controversy stems from comments posted on a now-deleted X (formerly Twitter) account, discovered by the campaigning group HopeNotHate.
According to HopeNotHate, in 2021, Kenyon responded to a user who wrote a degrading sexual message about Vorderman. When another user criticised the remark, Kenyon commented: "He's only saying what we're all thinking."
Vorderman told The Mirror: "I want an apology from Rob Kenyon, to me, and to all the other people he’s abused online."
Kenyon's Response
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, Kenyon said: "I am rough around the edges. I have made mistakes in my life. I'm not perfect. Nobody is. Not a single person in the world is perfect. I think everybody does say things that eventually they regret. It was a crude attempt at a joke to probably about 50 followers. No offence was meant, and it's not something I'd do now."
When asked directly if he would apologise, Kenyon replied: "I think I've addressed the issue. I think that no offence was meant and it wasn't a direct comment to her. If you go into any building site in the area or any public barracks, I think you’d hear a hundred times worse said. It was just, like I said, a crass attempt at a joke and it's not something I’d make now."
Political Pressure
Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, has faced pressure to withdraw support from Kenyon. Ex-Labour Cabinet minister Louise Haigh, who is leading Andy Burnham's by-election campaign, criticised the party's vetting process. She said: "Reform care so little about the people of Makerfield that they clearly didn't do the most basic vetting on him or his social media history."
Haigh added: "These disrespectful and sexist posts clearly show he is not fit to be an MP and if Reform had any respect for the people of Makerfield they would remove him as their candidate immediately."
Reform UK's Defence
A Reform UK spokesman defended Kenyon, stating: "We fully back Cllr Kenyon. He is an excellent, local candidate who we are confident will be a superb MP for Makerfield. These comments were made before he was in politics. Rob isn’t a polished, professional politician and doesn’t speak like one. That’s precisely why he’ll be a straight-talking, effective voice for normal working people in Makerfield."
The by-election in Makerfield is expected to be closely contested, with Labour's Andy Burnham facing a challenge from Reform UK. The controversy surrounding Kenyon's past remarks has added fuel to an already heated campaign.
