As Reform UK’s ‘sexist plumber’ holds firm in his refusal to apologise for derogatory remarks including a vile slur about Carol Vorderman, we are asking readers if the party represent a danger to women’s rights.
Robert Kenyon continues to face furious backlash over previous online comments, including claims women can’t drive, defending the annexation of Crimea, and crass remarks about TV legend Carol. He was blasted by a Question Time audience member this week as he refused to say sorry after the grim tweets resurfaced.
Anger was drawn after he appeared to agree with a post describing a vile sexual act directed at Ms Vorderman, with the broadcaster saying Mr Kenyon’s social media posts show his feelings towards women and should matter to voters ahead of the critical by-election.
View 2 ImagesCarol Vorderman fears his posts show the dangers that could be ahead (Image: Dave Benett/Getty Images)
She believes the remarks form part of a broader pattern of behaviour towards women and said: “This isn’t about one tweet, this is about Rob Kenyon’s pattern of online abuse, trying to belittle women. He closed down his account because he’s a little coward. And now he’s saying, oh, well it’s just a joke’. It isn’t a joke is it?”
Mr Kenyon said he rejected the charactisation of himself as a sexist. He said: “I was brought up by a single parent and my grandma, who was a widow, and an older sister. So I was brought up by women. I’ve got nothing but respect for women.” He admitted he had “made mistakes”, but said the past remarks had been “dragged up”.
He is facing off with Andy Burnham in the Makerfield by-election, in a vote which could pave the way for the Greater Manchester Mayor to challenge Keir Starmer.
Now, Mirror readers can have their say with a new poll launched today asking if Reform pose a real danger to women’s rights as they continue to push the ‘sexist’ candidate. If you can’t see the poll below, click here.
The comments were made on X and on a rugby league forum by an account under the username ‘post’, which says in other comments that their Twitter handle is @robkenyon1 and promotes Mr Kenyon’s book, The Blood Waltz.
Tweets sent by the ‘post’ account accused women of taking any decision to have an abortion lightly, in a later post on the same 2019 discussion thread. He allegedly wrote: “Reproductive rights? Women’s rights? They can dress it up all they want they are deciding to kill a baby inside the womb. … What they mean is they want to shag anyone they want and if they get caught they get a second chance and treat is as a secondary last chance form of contraception. They ain’t kidding anyone”.
Later on the same topic, ‘post’ added: “I’d hazard a guess that the majority [of abortions] are for vanity purposes like unwanted pregnancies.”
In comments from the now-deleted @robkenyon1 X account, it said: “Life begins at conception. Abortion is the cowardly act of murdering a defenceless baby … They don’t want babies? Use contraception!”
According to the i, he also allegedly made posts on an online rugby fan forum in the 2010s reportedly claiming English women “don’t care” about their appearance and “just walk around with their fat bellies and odd shapes pushing a pram at 16 in their PJ’s”. An account linked to the plumber also wrote that women can’t “ref, drive or give directions” and declared: “I’m sexist, sorry but I am.”
He has refused to say sorry and asked about the post, he said: “I’ve not made sexual remarks about Carol Vorderman, somebody else did. But then I responded with a crass joke about that comment. So I personally didn’t make the comment.”
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He was also skewered over another post on the forum, in which he said: “I’m sexist, sorry but I am. Women can’t referee, drive or give directions”.
Mr Kenyon claimed those comments could be “put to bed” as his wife had once given him directions. He said: “I know that’s false because my wife reminded me last night that she once directed us to Aberystwyth on an AA route map, so she’s put that one to bed”.