Isle of Wight Conservative MP, Robert Seely, has found himself in the middle of a Twitter ‘hoolie’ (not quite a storm, but it’s getting blustery) after last night calling a journalist from Press TV a ‘tosser’ on social media platform Twitter.
The target for the MP’s comment, Roshan Salih, had live-streamed video from inside a constituency Labour Party meeting where a vote of no confidence against the Labour Israel Chair, Joan Ryan, was being voted upon.
Our elected MP, Robert ‘Bob’ Seely, directed his tweet to the journalist at 10.29pm last night (Friday) stating:
When in fact you are just an anti-semitic, pro-Corbyn tosser? https://t.co/BV6CsZuY0R
— Bob Seely MP (@IoWBobSeely) September 7, 2018
Islanders unhappy with Bob
As Islanders woke up this morning and check their Twitter feed, what has followed is a growing thread of replies from Islanders clearly unhappy at the apparent ease with which our MP was prepared to insult another person on social media.
One response – from @jessofwight – read:
“MPs should be setting a standard – calling people tossers is below that standard”
Another – from Geoff Scott (@GeoffScottIOW) – read:
“This is not the type of language I expect to see from my elected representative. Irrespective of the issue or the views of the person you’re replying to, it is not becoming of an MP to use such expressions.”
Some support
At the time of publishing, Bob also has 15 Likes on his ‘Tosser’ Tweet, the first of which is from a County Press columnist.
A minority of Island Twitter users have expressed their support for Bob Seely’s tweet.
Ben Dyer (@benjamindyer) said:
“Love it :)”
Stephen Davis (@Stephen65601198) said:
“Best comment you have ever said”
Here are just some that we captured (click on the image and it will open in a new tab click again to enlarge the image):
Respect Pledge and Code of Conduct
Twitter user, Daniel Marriott, tweeted Brandon Lewis MP, about the tweet, asking whether the Conservative Chairman would do anything about the apparent breach of the respect pledge.
During the 2017 election campaign which saw Bob gain power, the Conservative Party issued a code of conduct against other candidates included, “To refrain from making abusive or offensive attacks on social media or verbally”.
This is CLEARLY a breach of the respect pledge and I'd like to know what @BrandonLewis and the @Conservatives are going to do about it.
— Daniel Marriott (@DanielMarriot13) September 8, 2018
In addition to the Conservative Pledge, there is a code of conduct for MPs.
It’s currently unclear whether the outburst breaches either of these things.
OnTheWight has written to the MP this morning to ask for his response to their concerns and we’ll update this article once we hear back.
A response was received from the MP’s office on Sunday.
“I am disappointed, but not surprised, that On The Wight has failed to put any context to my admittedly blunt remark. It is my responsibility to provide comment, it is not my responsibility to provide balance.
“My reaction came about after reading this man’s vile comments, some of which according to an internationally accepted version of anti-Semitism, are anti-Semitic as well as being deeply hostile to Israel. In addition, this ‘journalist’ allegedly was an active participant in efforts to undermine a moderate Labour MP, as part of a move towards de-selection. In my view, he is not a ‘journalist’ but a hard left agitator.
“In addition, Press TV has been banned in the UK. This wasn’t done on a whim. Its many ugly and offensive broadcast include allegedly showed forced confessions of tortured Iranian journalists. Worse, the torturer was standing off camera when the confession was broadcast. It has also been engaged in Holocaust denial, probably the single most offensive anti-Semitic act possible, and one which frankly damages us all.
“If I was some party political opportunist, I would welcome the chaos in the Labour Party caused by a hard left take-over and the attack and deselection of moderate MPs. However, I personally think it is awful what is happening to Labour. This is not part of a renewal of moderate, left politics, but its destruction.
“I think the way that this meeting was infiltrated was shocking, and when you have media working for Iranian state TV outlets who join political groups and participate in campaigns against moderate Labour MPs in a hard-left purge, that is not a good thing for British democracy. This is not a party political thing, but about the threat to our democracy.
“I should think of how other people see this, especially when read without context, and I should set an example. I will be more careful in future in the language I use, even when I am commenting on people or organisations who represent vile and extreme views. Do I regret the sentiment? Not a bit. Will I express it better? Possibly.
“On a more general point, my Island-focused comments are predominately on Instagram and Facebook. I use twitter for more general comments about national politics, alongside some local commentary.”
Update 10 Sept 2018: Added the response from the MP’s office received on Sunday.
Image: © Parliament TV
