Sign up to FREE email alerts from Liverpool Echo - Weekly Politics Subscribe Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email

A Liverpool Green party activist has been sacked after being condemned for using a sexist image on his Twitter profile.

Stephen Delahunty, described himself as “Press Co-ordinator” for Green Party parliamentary hopeful Martin Dobson in the Riverside constituency.

Mr Dobson has insisted he was a volunteer who helped with social media and said: “He is not working for me anymore.”

Mr Delahunty - who used the twitter name @vagrantoptimist - had an anime-style image of a woman in front of the Liver buildings, with a view seeing up her skirt.

When he was asked over Twitter by Labour councillors if he agreed the image was sexist he responded: “haha yawn. Do labour lack asense of humour as well as an ideological spine these days?”

He had also tweeted a picture of himself holding two large guns with the remark “Gunbelievable #holidaying #guns #cambodia”

The sexist image has since been removed, the Green Party says.

Mr Dobson later tweeted “the real press co-ordinator apologises fully for @vagrantoptimist‘s sexist & offensive tweets last night. Sorry”

He admitted it had been embarrassing and said they would put in place checks to prevent such incidences occurring in the future.

Cllr Nick Small, election agent for Riverside Labour’s Louise Ellman, said: “These images are offensive and anti-Liverpool.

“It beggars belief that the Green Party in Liverpool did not know that the individual working for them in a senior capacity in this campaign was involved in this. At the very least it has been remiss of them for not having done their research - a simple Google search would have revealed these images.”

Mr Dobson told the ECHO: “Stephen Delahunty is a volunteer who has been helping my campaign. Some of his work has been involved with social media. Unfortunately he allowed some offensive images from his personal account to be associated with the campaign.

“His comments about the images were made in a personal capacity and were not endorsed or supported by the Green Party in any way.

“I agree with critics that the images are sexist, and offensive and deeply regret the offence they have caused.

“These images have been removed and Stephen will no longer be working on my social media platforms.

“As the Green Party candidate for Liverpool Riverside I apologise unreservedly and wholeheartedly to councillors Anne O’Byrne, Rachael O Byrne, Michelle Corrigan, Patrick Hurley , Malcolm Kennedy, and Hetty Wood. I also apologise to anyone else who was offended by the online content that came from Stephen’s personal twitter account yesterday.

“We do not support behaviour that demeans women or glamorises weapons, and will ensure checks and balances are put in place to prevent such incidences occurring in the future.”

Mr Delahunty today also apologised. He said: “I’m no longer working for the Green Party. I was involved in a voluntary capacity.

“I made some mistakes on the Twitter account. I have apologised, and apologised to Martin.”

He said the picture with the guns was “a personal holiday photograph”.