A REFORM UK candidate left women in a Question Time audience shaking their heads as he attempted to excuse vile sexist comments he has made in the past.
Robert Kenyon, who once admitted “I am sexist” in an online post, appeared on a special BBC debate for the Makerfield by-election where he was pulled up on his misogynistic comments.
One audience member told the Reform candidate: “I’d rather have a career politician than a plumber who’s a sexist.”
Host Fiona Bruce read through comments he had made online over the years, including calling abortion a “cowardly act” as recently as the last three years.
She said: “You described yourself as sexist, you have made offensive comments about women, you’ve admitted that, you’ve also said that abortion is the ‘cowardly act of women murdering defenceless babies’ and that women do it so they can ‘shag anyone they want’.
“I’ve got nothing but respect for women… I’ve said things years ago that I wouldn’t say now” Reform UK’s Robert Kenyon says he “won’t accept” being labelled as “sexist”, but admits he “made mistakes” with comments he made “15 years ago” that have been “dragged up”#bbcqt pic.twitter.com/nwiRbkDI7T
— BBC Question Time (@bbcquestiontime) June 4, 2026
“That’s your phrase, not mine. I raise it because lots of people in the audience raise it and I want to give you the chance to answer.”
Keyon was also previously revealed to have responded “he’s only saying what we’re all thinking” to a post by a person who took issue with another social media user’s telling former Countdown presenter Carol Vorderman: “I’d love to smell and lick your arsehole.”
Vorderman demanded an apology from Kenyon after his comment came to light.
Speaking on Question Time, the Reform candidate said in his defence that he was “brought up by women”.
Kenyon said: “I won’t accept that label, I mean a lot of the things have been said 15 years ago, I hold my hands up, I’ve made mistakes.”
Pushed on the abortion comments, which Bruce pointed out were made “just two, three years ago”, Kenyon added: “I’m just addressing the first point where she said, where I was given a label that I won’t accept. 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. So I think something that’s said 15 years ago, dragged up from an old rugby forum, it’s taken out of context and like I say, I’ve made mistakes and said things years ago that I wouldn’t say now and I definitely don’t believe that, on that point, you know, so, yeah, I hope that addresses that issue and like I say, I’ve got nothing but respect for women.”
