Robert Kenyon, Reform UK's candidate for the Makerfield byelection, faces fresh scrutiny after old social media posts surfaced in which he attacked Brexit as economically damaging and dismissed its supporters as peddlers of "nationalistic pish."
The comments, made on a rugby league forum in 2016, contradict Reform UK's core identity as the party most committed to delivering Brexit. Nigel Farage built Reform around defending the 2016 referendum result and opposing what he views as betrayal by establishment politicians. Kenyon's criticism of Brexit as self-harming undermines that central message just as the party contests the Makerfield byelection in a historically Labour seat.
This discovery compounds existing problems for Kenyon's candidacy. Previous reporting revealed confusion about whether Kenyon actually voted for Brexit, a basic credential question for a Reform candidate. His negative characterization of pro-Brexit campaigners as nationalist figures peddling hollow slogans suggests deeper ideological distance from Farage's project than Reform has acknowledged.
The timing damages Reform's credibility. The party has positioned itself as the anti-establishment force defending voters' 2016 choice against what it calls Westminster obstruction. Fielding a candidate who dismissed that very choice as economically ruinous invites accusations of hypocrisy or incompetent vetting.
For Reform, the Makerfield byelection represents a chance to demonstrate electoral muscle and consolidate support among working-class voters in the North. Labour holds the seat but faces anti-incumbent sentiment. Reform hopes to capitalize on that frustration. However, candidates who undermine the party's foundational message create openings for rivals to question Reform's seriousness and consistency.
Kenyon's comments raise fundamental questions about candidate selection within a party built almost entirely around one figure and one policy goal. If Reform cannot