Jo Swinson refuses to be bullied by online trolls

Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson has insisted she will not be “bullied” by the online abuse women receive in public life.

During a General Election visit to the south-west of England, Ms Swinson said she would not be silenced.

The Lib Dem leader said she received “a lot of abuse” but it is not just politicians who are targeted on social media.

Ms Swinson told the PA news agency: “If you speak to any woman in public life, or people of colour, or gay people or people with disabilities, people from those groups – whether they are sports personalities, or TV presenters or journalists – will face more abuse because we still live in a society that doesn’t have equality.

“And we shouldn’t shy away from that and not recognise that that is the case. And, of course, it should prompt us to continue to change it.

“And one of the ways that we will change it is by having more women, more gay people, more people of colour in positions of power.”

She added: “In a sense it is a bit of a chicken and egg because we need to get more people involved and, you know, of course I get a lot of abuse, but it is not going to stop me.

“I’m not going to be bullied out of standing up for what I believe in.”

Ms Swinson took her election fight to the south-west as she used a visit to Somerset to push the party’s environmental agenda.

Visiting an eco-friendly nursery, Ms Swinson lit a fire using wood and cotton, and toasted marshmallows.