A TORY General Election candidate has withdrawn from standing following the discovery of “wholly inappropriate” comments on a fitness website.
Sam Trask, who was standing in the key battleground Bridgend constituency, made sexual comments about women on the MyFitnessPal website, according to The Mirror.
The Tory candidate said he measured bra sizes by “hand sizing them by feel”, adding: “Maybe have to make a more detailed inspection with my lips and tongue... for accuracy, of course.”
And in a discussion about chat-up lines, Trask was reported as having written: “Hey there, wanna come to my place and watch porn on my 50 inch flat screen mirror?”
In a statement to the newspaper, Trask described the remarks as “wholly inappropriate” and said he had decided to withdraw as a candidate.
Nominations for candidates for the General Election close at 4pm on Friday.
The Conservatives won the Bridgend seat from Labour in 2019, when Jamie Wallis – who previously said he would not stand in the constituency at this election – secured a majority of 1157.
Trask told The Mirror: “These comments were made a number of years ago, and I recognise they are wholly inappropriate. For that I apologise and have decided to withdraw as a candidate.”
Chris Elmore, Labour’s candidate for the Bridgend seat, called on the Conservative Party to re-vet candidates to ensure they were “fit to serve the public”.
Elmore said: “These lurid revelations pose serious questions about the calibre of candidates the Tories have been forced to select.
“People here in Bridgend rightly expect better from their candidates for public office.
“With the deadline for nominations approaching, Rishi Sunak still has time to do the right thing and re-vet his candidates to make sure they are fit to serve the public in Parliament.”
A Conservative Party spokesperson said: “The Conservative Party does not condone these comments. We are looking into the matter.”
