Plaid Cymru Senedd candidate stands down after using 'crude' term to describe children

Emily Price 

A Plaid Cymru Senedd election candidate has announced he will stand down after he used a highly offensive term to describe children.

Neil Roberts was hoping to win a seat in the Caerdydd Penarth constituency on May 7 but faced a backlash when a social media post revealed he had referred to children as "cum pets".

The post had been distributed on social media by Reform's Welsh leader Dan Thomas who called for Plaid's leader Rhun ap Iorwerth to "give urgent clarity on whether he supports these comments".

Roberts said the Twitter post from 2021 was "inappropriate" adding that he took full responsibility for it.

The Plaid Cymru hopeful had used the term after another Twitter user said they were "against people having kids just for the sake of it."

"Don't have children if you're not capable of raising them," the user added.

Roberts replied to the post: "Cum pets are for life not just for Christmas".

In a statement, he described the phrase as an "online slang term" adding that the post came from an "old defunct social media account".

"It was a crass attempt at humour and I regret it deeply," he said.

'Crude'

Roberts later issued a further statement to BBC Wales saying: "Years ago, I made a comment using online slang that was inappropriate and crude.

"The language I used was wrong, and I take full responsibility for it. I apologise unreservedly for the offence and concern it has caused.

"I do not want this to detract from the campaign or from the issues that matter to our community.

"I am therefore stepping down as a candidate with immediate effect. I wish the party and its candidates the very best in this historic campaign ahead."

Loan company

In August last year, Nation.Cymru reported that Roberts was working for a payday loan company charging interest of up to 93.8%.

The company was owned by a billionaire under investigation for fraud.

Roberts also came under fire for a series of historic social media posts, one of which he called Donald Trump a "c**t".

At the time, Plaid Cymru declined to comment.

News that Roberts will step away from the Welsh election comes after a separate Plaid Cymru Senedd election candidate apologised for social media posts he published over ten years ago that used sexist language and referred to illegal drug-taking.

Clwyd candidate Bradley-Hughes said he was "deeply sorry" for the comments which included highly offensive song lyrics.

In a statement he said: "These posts were made over fifteen years ago, when I was a teenager, and do not reflect the person I am today.

"Some quoted song lyrics, which I shared at the time without thinking. They do not reflect my views whatsoever. I am 31 now and would never make such comments today and I understand that they were wrong at the time.

"Looking back I can see how easy it was to make careless comments online as a young person at a time when social media was new and there was little guidance for teenagers. That said the responsibility was mine and I take it fully.

"I am deeply sorry for any offence or concern they caused. I have grown and learned a great deal since then. My values today - respect, inclusion, and public service - guide everything I do and I am committed to living by them every day."