Reform's Kenyon vows to 'save' library Labour already saved
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Robert Kenyon of Reform accidentally drew attention to the fact that his main rival Andy Burnham already saved the library

Andy Burnham, Zia Yusuf, and Robert Kenyon of Reform UK

Robert Kenyon is Reform UK’s candidate in the Makerfield by-election. In aid of this, he and Zia Yusuf vowed to save a local library on 2 June. As it turns out, though, Labour had already saved this particular library:

Hi @RobKenyonReform, Ashton Library was already saved thanks to the Labour MP Josh Simons (you might of heard of him) and Councillors.

Being that you’ve not bothered to even sign the paperwork for being a councillor, let alone attending your first meeting, it’s no surprise you… pic.twitter.com/kHFkM7zaNi

— Reform Party UK Exposed 🇬🇧 (@reformexposed) June 2, 2026

The Makerfield saviour

In his video with Zia Yusuf, Kenyon says the following when asked what happened to the library:

So I think, I believe it’s got dry rot in the roof, and it’s going to cost a lot of money to put right. Like I say, Labour have looked after – the Labour Council have been in charge of looking after this library for a long time – and now they’re campaigning to save it, and, you know, It’s kind of, I don’t know, maybe it’s lack of maintenance or whatever that’s caused this issue.

A lesser man would have learned the answer to this before recording the video, but not Robert Kenyon. Kenyon also said:

They’ve obviously not prioritised Ashton Library until it’s got too late and now they’re rallying around to try and save it.

We’re no fans of Labour, but did something else happen in Britain over the past two decades which led to the underfunding of local authorities and the mass-closures of public libraries? Something that rhymes with ‘Tory driven austerity’, maybe? And wasn’t Zia Yusuf a Tory up until very recently? And weren’t most senior Reform politicians Tories up until very recently?

• Nigel Farage – ex Tory, now Reform.
• Richard Tice – ex Tory, now Reform.
• Lee Anderson – ex Tory, now Reform.
• Zia Yusuf – ex Tory, now Reform.
• Sarah Pochin – ex Tory, now Reform.

Reform UK are just the Tories that jumped ship. Establishment through and through. https://t.co/hTHrjFmrPT

— Carter (@carterp0well) March 24, 2025

This isn’t to say Labour is doing enough to reverse the effects of austerity, of course. But let’s not pretend a bunch turquoise Tories are going to undo a policy they spent over a decade supporting.

Back to the library, Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham had this to say:

Yep. It’s almost funny. @RobKenyonReform never came to 1 meeting on Ashton Library. Me, cllrs and residents worked backsides off to save it.

In politics, berating ppl on socials doesn’t get stuff done.

He’s local, angry, but no plan to actually DO anything. Like… https://t.co/hlazx46Z9b

— Josh Simons (@joshsimonsmp) June 2, 2026

This isn’t a great look for Kenyon, given that Burnham is his main rival in the Makerfield by-election. To be fair to Kenyon, though, he’s not had a library these past two years, so his booksmarts must have diminished.

Before you go thinking this is a Burnham endorsement, by the way, we’ve got problems with him too:

Part timers

If you’re worried Kenyon might get in trouble for not showing up to fulfil his responsibilities as a councillor, don’t be. After all, his boss Nigel Farage has an even worse record:

Never on the team sheet.

Farage has missed 77 consecutive Parliamentary votes – failing to inform constituents why he hasn’t shown up to vote throughout the course of April and May.

Where is Farage? pic.twitter.com/cjoYKh0L7x

— The Green Party (@TheGreenParty) June 2, 2026

It’s more dire than this looks too. There have been 525 votes in this parliament, and Farage has shown up to just 169. At 32%, this means he’s shown up for less than a third of the votes he should have done. Do you think you could get away with missing seven days out of every ten at work?

Despite this, Farage and his party pretend to be the party of people who actually get up and go to work in the morning:

My party is the party of alarm clock Britain.

— Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) November 3, 2025

Maybe ‘Alarm Clock Britain’ is the name of a real ale they serve at his local?

Zia Yusuf’s parliamentary record, meanwhile, is perfect. And the reason it’s perfect is because he’s not a parliamentarian, despite his claims to the contrary:

Mate, this is embarrassing.

You are literally not the shadow Home Secretary.

You’re not even an elected politician. pic.twitter.com/CZiPgk5YX9

— Harry Eccles (@Heccles94) June 1, 2026

Reform — Worse to come

The library video isn’t the only one that’s making Kenyon look clueless:

This might be the worst performance from a political candidate I have ever seen in my life. pic.twitter.com/Kku1RecFJ0

— Ali Milani (@AliMilaniUK) June 2, 2026

As bad as the above is, we think things are going to get even worse later this week:

Join Question Time for a Makerfield By-Election Special

On the panel: Andy Burnham, Michael Winstanley, Jake Austin, Sarah Wakefield, and Robert Kenyon

Thurs 4th June at 9pm on @BBCiPlayer, @BBCSounds, and the @BBCNews channel

Apply now: https://t.co/3ivO2BXgl1 #bbcqt pic.twitter.com/f9v8N13CYc

— BBC Question Time (@bbcquestiontime) June 2, 2026

If things do go badly, Kenyon can always just record a video claiming they went well. That’s the benefit of being full of hot air; you can literally just say anything.

Featured image via Christopher Furlong (Getty Media)

By Willem Moore

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