The unearthed messages from Reform’s ‘sexist’ by-election candidate
A succession of social media posts claiming Russia was "well within their rights" to annex Crimea and that women "can't drive or give directions" have been linked to Reform's by-election candidate. The past social media activity of Robert Kenyon - a 41-year-old self-employed plumber and Wigan councillor - has been under close scrutiny since he was selected by Nigel Farage for the Makerfield by-election on 18 June. He will go up against Labour's Andy Burnham, who has served as Mayor of Greater Manchester since 2017, and is widely expected to challenge Sir Keir Starmer for the party leadership if he wins.
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health
Why knee injuries are on the rise in the young
Caption: An elderly woman holds her knee with her hands, which has become sore from running. Concept of joint and knee problems, arthritis and osteoarthritis in old age.Photographer: Tatiana MaksimovaProvider: Getty ImagesSource: Moment RF
Young people are suffering a rapidly rising number of knee and overuse injuries as the UK experiences a boom in running, according to physiotherapists.
Clinics report a sharp increase in people inspired by social media "runfluencers" who are injuring themselves by pushing too hard and underestimating the toll on the body of distance running.
What you need to know
Caption: A group of joggers racing against each other on pedestrian walk way at the park.Photographer: Tom WernerProvider: Getty ImagesSource: Digital VisionCopyright: Copyright by Franziska & Tom Werner
Running boom
The popularity of running among people in their twenties has surged, fuelled by social media and run clubs.
Hobbling home
One London clinic has seen a more than 100 per cent rise in running-related injuries over the last five years.
Caption: Injury leg while running outdoors. First aid for sprained ligament or tendon. Close-up on dark background.Photographer: Oleg BreslavtsevProvider: Getty ImagesSource: Moment RF
Caption: Close-up view of female jogger tying laces of her sport shoes before running exercise routine. Motivation, healthy lifestyle and fitness concept.Photographer: Xavier LorenzoProvider: Getty ImagesSource: Moment RF
Knee problems
The most common problems are related to the knee, as well as shin splints, ankle sprains and Achilles problems.
'Runfluencers' fuelling over-exertion
There is no doubt that running is going through a boom - a record 1.33 million have applied for next year's London Marathon. But a social media driven exercise culture is also creating problems for newcomers.
Caption: Active sportsman stretching and warming up in order to avoid knee pain during training.
Sport injuries treating and after trauma recovery conceptsPhotographer: Yana IskayevaProvider: Getty ImagesSource: Moment RF
Caption: Male runner training by climbing stairs outdoors.Photographer: Cavan Images / Carles IturbeProvider: Getty Images/Cavan Images RFSource: Cavan Images RFCopyright: CARLES_ITURBE
Experts warn that runfluencers, who document training and sell coaching plans, can lead to novices doing too much, too quickly. They emphasise instead the importance of starting slowly and anticipating the accumulation of fatigue over weeks of training.
weather
When is it too hot to walk your dog?
Caption: The concept of hot weather and a pet. Hands holding a bottle and giving water to a dog in an urban environment. Breed Airedale Terrier.Photographer: OLGA KAZANTSEVAProvider: Getty ImagesSource: iStockphotoCopyright: Kazantseva Olga, [email protected]
It is not only humans who will have been feeling the heat in recent days.
The onset heatstroke in dogs can happen in minutes, meaning owners should take particular care when walking their pooch in hot weather. The Kennel Club recommends measures including only taking dogs out at cooler times of the day and looking out for signs of heat distress, including heavy panting and lethargy or confusion.
What you need to know
- Dogs cannot regulate their body temperatures as well as humans.
Panting is their main cooling mechanism. They can also sweat from their paw pads and noses.
- During extreme heat, dogs should only be walked very early in the morning or later in the evening. Always carry water and something for your pet to drink from.
- Very hot pavements can burn your dog's paws so try to avoid them.
When at home, put ice cubes in your pooch's water bowl and give them damp towels to lie on. Never place a damp towel over the dog because this can trap heat.
The signs of heatstroke to look out for and what to do next
A dog in heat distress can show signs such as heavy panting even when not exercising, unwillingness to move, dribbling and confusion, as well as not walking in a straight line. Contact a vet immediately if heatstroke is suspected and move the dog into shade or a cool floor.
Carefully pour water over its body, focusing on neck, stomach and inner thighs. Fan the dog with cool air.
Caption: black labrador dog exhausted by the heat lying on the white tile of a kitchen in summerPhotographer: Nicolas Jooris-AncionProvider: Getty Images/iStockphotoSource: iStockphotoCopyright: NJOO
NEWS
3 min read
(Photo: Matt Cardy/Getty).
CONSUMER
Lidl replaces Morrisons as Britain's fifth-biggest supermarket chain
The German-owned discounter increased its sales by nearly 9 per cent in the three months to mid-May, making it the fastest-growing store-based food retailer, according to new figures.
Lidl now has a record 8.6 per cent market share. The rapid sales growth, fuelled by households tightening their belts amid renewed cost of living pressures, means it has leapfrogged Morrisons (8.3 per cent) as the fifth-largest supermarket.
What you need to know
- Lidl has emerged as a big winner of shifting food retail patterns as shoppers use promotions to keep costs down.
Grocery inflation last month slowed to 3.1 per cent.
- Figures from Worldpanel by Numerator show Lidl increased its sales by 8.8 per cent in the last quarter to 17 May. Only online grocer Ocado - 10.2 per cent - did better as a food-based retailer.
- Lidl now sits behind Aldi, Asda, Sainsbury's and Tesco in Britain's supermarket pecking order. Morrisons insists it market share is underestimated by the Worldpanel figures, which exclude sales from its convenience stores.
Lidl: How the German chain has become a British retail favourite
Some 25 years ago, Lidl accounted for just 1.4 per cent of a UK grocery market where names such as Safeway, Somerfield and Kwik Save were still active. While those chains are now long gone, Lidl - along with fellow German brand Aldi - has rapidly prospered.
Lidl has increased the wages of all its hourly-paid workers(Photo: Andrew Matthews/PA)
Caption: New Everyday and Weekly surprises merchandise display at Lidl Food Market, Queens, New York. (Photo by: Lindsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)Photographer: UCGProvider: UCG/Universal Images Group via GSource: Universal Images Group Editorial
Its emphasis on low prices has helped Lidl build market share in Britain's cut-throat food retail sector. It now has 1,000 stores and 13 distribution centres, employing 35,000 staff across Great Britain.
courts
Liverpool goalkeeper fined for using phone while driving
Caption: BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - MAY 15: Giorgi Mamardashvili of Liverpool during the Premier League match between Aston Villa and Liverpool at Villa Park on May 15, 2026 in Birmingham, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images)Photographer: Catherine Ivill - AMAProvider: Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images EuropeCopyright: 2026 Catherine Ivill - AMA
A Liverpool FC player has been fined GBP440 after he was caught by police watching a video on his smartphone while driving on the motorway.
Georgian goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili was seen by officers holding his phone at the centre of his steering wheel while he was on the M6 near Warrington in January this year. The player did not enter a plea and was convicted on the basis of police written evidence.
What you need to know
- The 27-year-old player, the first Georgian to play for Liverpool, was caught by police at about 3.45pm on 27 January while driving in his Audi on the M6 motorway.
- In a statement, a Cheshire Police officer said the player was holding a phone.
The officer said: "The driver appeared to be watching something on the screen whilst he was driving at motorway speed."
- Mamardashvili did not respond to a police prosecution notice and his case was dealt with in a private hearing. As well as being fined he received six penalty points.
A closer look at the background
Mamardashvili is only the latest in a steady flow of drivers being punished by the courts for using a mobile phone while behind the wheel.Between 2022-2025, there was a 21 per cent increase in convictions for the motoring offence.
Caption: Young Asian businessman looking at mobile phone, sitting in a car. Man of style and status in full using smartphone, traveling by a car. Business travel.
Mobile navigation on smartphone.Photographer: Oscar WongProvider: Getty ImagesSource: Moment RF
Caption: Young woman texting while drivingPhotographer: Peter DazeleyProvider: Getty ImagesSource: The Image Bank RF
It has been illegal to use a phone while driving since 2003; But the law was tightened in 2022 to ensure that only hands-free use is legal. Since last year, AI-powered roadside cameras can identify drivers using phones or not wearing seatbelts.
science
How music lessons can improve attention span
Caption: Girls practicing playing violin and trumpetPhotographer: JGI/Jamie GrillProvider: Getty Images/Tetra images RFSource: Tetra images RFCopyright: ?JGI/Jamie Grill/Blend Images LLC
The ability to play a musical instrument improves the attention span of children and young adults, a study suggests. Canadian researchers found musicians were able to respond faster and with fewer lapses in focus when their attention span was tested compared to non-musicians.
The findings suggest learning an instrument could be a way of countering the erosion of attention spans caused by social media.
What you need to know
- The study compared the performance of 268 musicians and non-musicians, aged eight to 34, who were set a number of computer-based tasks.
- The two groups were closely matched on factors such as age, socio-economic status, personality traits and time spent playing video games.
- Those with formal musical training were found to be faster at responding to the test prompts and showed fewer lapses in concentration while carrying out tasks.
A closer look at the findings
The researchers at Canada's McMaster University emphasised that the gains were broadly modest.But the findings add to a debate about the wider educational benefits of learning a musical instrument.
Photographer: Justin PagetProvider: Getty ImagesSource: Digital Vision
Caption: Boy playing drums in a music schoolPhotographer: FG TradeProvider: Getty ImagesSource: E+
Rafael Roman-Caballero, who led the study, said children may accumulate wider cognitive skills as they learn an instrument, such as co-ordination and an ability to correct mistakes as they play. He said: "Like many cognitive abilities, attention may become more refined and efficient the more it is exercised."
money
Grandmother's GBP1m lottery win playing late husband's numbers
Caption: EDITORIAL USE ONLY(left to right) Julie Tresadern, Rose Tresadern and Barry Tresadern celebrate winning ?1 million on the National Lottery Lotto with afternoon tea at the Roslyn Beach Hotel in Southend-on-Sea.
Issue date: Wednesday May 27, 2026. PA Photo. The family played using their late husband and father Derek's Lotto numbers, which came up in the April 18 draw.
Photo credit should read: Kieran Cleeves/PA Media AssignmentsPhotographer: Kieran Cleeves/PA Media AssignmentsProvider: Kieran Cleeves/PA Media AssignmentsSource: PA
Rose Tresadern scooped the GBP1m National Lottery prize along with her two children after deciding to continue playing her late husband Derek's numbers following his death last year. Retired office manager Rose, 80, from Southend-on-Sea, Essex, said the win made it feel like Derek was "still looking out for us". She plans to spend some of her winnings on a new ring to remind her of Derek.
What you need to know
- The family decided to continue playing Mr Tresadern's Lotto numbers because they reminded them of him. The 83-year-old former business analyst died last year.
- The numbers - 1, 4, 12, 15, 39, and the bonus ball 48 - came up in the Lotto draw on 18 April, netting them a GBP1m prize for matching five numbers plus the bonus ball.
- The prize is being shared between Mrs Tresadern and her children, Barry, 52, and Julie, 57. She said she did not know what the numbers had meant to her husband, adding: "I know he'd be over the moon."
How the winnings will be spent
When Mrs Tresadern phoned her children to tell them of their good fortune, they initially thought something was wrong. She said: "I could hardly speak... When I told them we'd won GBP1m, there was just silence."
Camelot's profits are up - but cash for good causes down - as players switch to scratch cards
Caption: EDITORIAL USE ONLY(left to right) Barry Tresadern, Rose Tresadern and Julie Tresadern celebrate winning ?1 million on the National Lottery Lotto with afternoon tea at the Roslyn Beach Hotel in Southend-on-Sea. Issue date: Wednesday May 27, 2026. PA Photo.
The family played using their late husband and father Derek's Lotto numbers, which came up in the April 18 draw. Photo credit should read: Kieran Cleeves/PA Media AssignmentsPhotographer: Kieran Cleeves/PA Media AssignmentsProvider: Kieran Cleeves/PA Media AssignmentsSource: PA
Mrs Tresadern is planning on using some of her winnings to move to a retirement home better suited to her mobility needs. She will also buy a ring after her original engagement ring became worn out.
But Kenyon is making waves of his own.
Since his selection as the candidate for Reform UK, a string of unearthed social media posts have been linked to him[1]. These appear to demonstrate his views on Russia's annexation of Crimea, abortion, women and Brexit. A Reform UK spokesman said: "We fully back Cllr Kenyon.
He is an excellent, local candidate who we are confident will be a superb MP for Makerfield. "These comments were made before he was in politics. Rob isn't a polished, professional politician and doesn't speak like one.
That's precisely why he'll be a straight-talking, effective voice for normal working people in Makerfield." The i Paper has not independently verified the contents of all the posts, some of which were first reported by The Times, The Daily Telegraph, and The Mirror.
Russia was 'well within their rights' to annex Crimea
The most recent social media post linked to Kenyon, reported by The Daily Telegraph on Wednesday, relates to comments made on an online forum in 2014, shortly after Russia's annexation of Crimea. Responding to a post describing the annexation as "democracy in action", Kenyon appears to have written: "I agree totally, Russia are well within their rights to do what they have done, as we did with the Falklands."
Defence minister Luke Pollard said Farage had "again chosen a candidate who promotes Kremlin talking points and makes excuses for [Vladimir] Putin's unacceptable actions against Ukraine". A Reform spokesman told The Telegraph that Kenyon "at no point did... explicitly support or endorse Russia's actions in Crimea" and that he was "fully opposed to Russia's illegal and brutal invasion of Ukraine".
Abortion is the 'legalised killing of babies'
The i Paper reported on Monday that posts on a rugby league forum, attributed to Kenyon and dated 2019, included the claim that abortion was "legalised killing of babies."[2] In a later post on the same thread, Kenyon appears to write that women seeking abortions were "deciding to kill a baby inside the womb" and that the "majority [of abortions] are for vanity purposes like unwanted pregnancies".
A 2022 post on the now-deleted @robkenyon1 X account stated: "Life begins at conception. Abortion is the cowardly act of murdering a defenceless baby... They don't want babies?
Use contraception." Labour Party chair Anna Turley said Kenyon was "not fit to represent Makerfield" and that the posts showed he would "want to strip away the protections in place to support women and their right to choose". A Reform spokesman said abortion was "a matter of conscience" and that the comments had been made before Kenyon entered politics.
Women 'can't ref, drive or give directions'
Posts on the same rugby league forum, reported by The Times on Tuesday, included remarks from 2011 and 2012 in which an account linked to Kenyon said that "women can't ref, drive or give directions".
The account stated: "I'm sexist, sorry but I am." Other posts made derogatory remarks about English women's appearance and a 2019 post criticised the use of women as pundits on Sky Sports rugby league coverage, saying they were "only there to tick a box". Separately, Hope Not Hate alleged that Kenyon had responded to a post containing graphic sexual language about television presenter Carol Vorderman, writing: "He's only saying what we're all thinking."
Vorderman told The Mirror: "I want an apology from Rob Kenyon, to me, and to all the other people he's abused online." Danny Kruger, Reform MP for East Wiltshire, described the Vorderman post as "clearly an inappropriate thing to say publicly" but told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that Kenyon had regarded it as a "private conversation".
Pride events 'shouldn't be thrown in the faces' of children
The Daily Mirror alleged on Tuesday that posts on the rugby league forum included a 2009 comment using a homophobic slur and a 2010 post suggesting that gay television presenters did "a lot more damage to the reputation of homosexuals" than a footballer's offensive tweet. A 2020 post, apparently responding to rugby club Wigan Warriors announcing a Pride Day fixture, said the club "shouldn't have the issue thrown in their faces" and was directed at children with "impressionable minds".
Another post the same year said LGBT people should "stop making a big song and dance about it" and accused them of "taking over other events". A Reform spokesman said: "Many of these comments were made nearly 20 years ago - well before Rob was in politics."
He 'woke up sh*****g himself' after the Brexit vote
The Times reported on Tuesday that posts on the rugby league forum, dated 2019, showed an account linked to Kenyon writing: "So anyone who thinks I love Trump, voted Brexit, read the Daily Mail, live in the 1950s, a Tory and 103 is wrong. I'm none of the above."
Another post reportedly said he had woken "the day after Brexit shitting himself to what was voted for," while a further post praised the principle of EU free movement. Reform denied this was Kenyon's view, telling The Times that the Makerfield candidate "voted Leave in 2016 and is a proud Brexiteer" and said his later comments showed he had come to support Britain's departure from the EU. The party said the posts were consistent with Farage's position that the EU "needs to be stripped right back."
The i Paper has not been able to independently verify the posts attributed to Kenyon.