The West Lancashire Ukip candidate pulled out of hustings after being threatened by someone signing themselves as “Standing Up To Ukip”.

Jack Sen was due to attend the hustings at Ormskirk Civic Hall on Tuesday but decided not to go to the event after receiving a threatening letter.

The Ormskirk Advertiser and Southport Visiter also received the same letter, which stated: “If Sen appears at the hustings the event will go tragically for all involved.”

Mr Sen has come under fire recently for his position that “our political, academic and media elite are complicit with sexual violence against children. That by pushing homosexual/sexual education on children and turning a blind eye to grooming gang rapes, our ruling class are facilitating the crimes.”

Mr Sen said: “I have been asking myself all night whether or not I should attend the hustings and take a chance with my/public safety, or simply opt out of the event, as I have been advised, and do what’s right for the community and my family.

“I know that regardless of what I do we have all lost something when we allow bullies to subvert the democratic process, so it is a very tough decision.

“People that send out coordinated death threats as this group has, in order to silence a candidate, are criminals, and above all bullies.

“I personally think it is immoral to risk public safety or that of my own wellbeing for the sake of principle alone or so the political elite can stage an event and for that reason I have decided that I will be not attending the event while the police investigation is under way and before arrests are made.

“It’s a shame that the other candidates and the political organisers, even if in the interest of only honouring the original spirit of the hustings, haven’t made the same decision.

“Personally if anyone were to get hurt because I attended I would not be able to live with myself.

“Knowing that people plan on attending haven’t even been alerted that serious threats have been made deeply concerns me.

“The fact that I am also now at a serious disadvantage, as well as the advice I have been given, has played a small role in my decision making process.

“I can’t deny that knowing that there are people that want to harm me in spite of the fact that I am running for parliament because I love West Lancashire and want to see the community I care for restored, has certainly rattled me.”

The threating letter was signed “A.I. Standing Up to Ukip” – an apparent attempt to align the writer with the campaign group Stand Up To Ukip.

A spokesperson for Stand Up to Ukip said: “Stand Up To Ukip had no knowledge of threats made to Jack Sen, Ukip candidate for West Lancashire, and certainly do not condone this.

“Our campaign supports challenging Ukip’s politics of scapegoating through robust debate and peaceful protests, not threats or intimidation.”