Allegations about Reform candidate's posts are troubling, Labour says

Labour raised “serious and deeply troubling allegations” about social media activity connected to a Reform UK candidate in the Makerfield by-election. Searchlight claimed Robert Kenyon was friends with fascist campaigner Gary Raikes on a now deleted Facebook page, and Reform UK did not dispute the claim. Kenyon’s X account was terminated by X in 2024, and Reform UK offered no explanation for the termination. Reform UK said Kenyon’s Facebook page was removed after he was elected as a local councillor and that the page was conventional, with a public-facing profile expected once in office. Reform UK also said being Facebook friends does not mean endorsing views. Labour demanded answers about Reform’s awareness and Kenyon’s relationship with Raikes.

"Labour says there are “serious and deeply troubling allegations” relating to the social media pages of the Reform UK candidate in the Makerfield by-election. The campaigning organisation Searchlight claims Robert Kenyon was friends with fascist campaigner Gary Raikes on a now deleted Facebook page, a claim that is not disputed by Reform UK. Kenyon also had an X account terminated by X in 2024. Reform are offering no explanation as to why this happened."

"The party says their candidate's Facebook page was removed after he was elected as a local councillor earlier this month. They say that the now deleted page was a conventional Facebook page and they concluded he should have a public facing profile once he was elected to public office as a councillor. The party adds that Kenyon never spoke or was in touch with Raikes and being a Facebook friend “does not constitute an endorsement of his views”."

"A Labour spokesman said: “These are serious and deeply troubling allegations. Nigel Farage needs to urgently come clean on whether Reform were aware of his candidate's apparent fascist friends. Robert Kenyon must also explain himself to those he is seeking to represent. What is his relationship with this man? Voters in Makerfield and across Britain deserve an answer.”"

Read at www.bbc.com