Shrewsbury MP Daniel Kawczynski deletes Twitter after row over Ukrainian refugee post
Shrewsbury MP Daniel Kawczynski has deleted his Twitter account saying he no longer has confidence in the platform.
It comes after a row over now-deleted tweet from the Conservative MP about Ukrainian refugees.
Mr Kawczynski's account was no longer visible on Monday and the MP confirmed to the Star that he would no longer be using his account, saying: "I do not think that Twitter is an optimum way in which politicians should communicate with the electorate.
"I have tried it for eight years and it is not a platform for me.
"Careful press releases and the recording of Parliamentary debates is sufficient as I do not have confidence in Twitter. It has allowed a huge amount of denigration and disinformation."
Mr Kawczynski had provoked a furious reaction online when he appeared to suggest in a tweet that he did not want Ukrainian refugees to travel to the UK. On Sunday activists appealed for him to 'have a heart' by hanging garlands of blue and yellow hearts - the colours of both Ukraine and Shrewsbury - near his office.
However he has since spoken out to say that his tweet was misinterpreted and that he wanted refugees to be welcomed in the UK as well as helped to rebuild their country.
The Shrewsbury and Atcham MP's deleted tweet had said: "British left wing parties demand Britain takes in more Ukrainian refugees. This is illiterate and immoral. When war is over Ukrainians will need to return home to rebuild their country. We should be supporting Ukrainian refugees in frontline states like Poland and Romania."
The backlash to the tweet included from his own constituency party, and a senior fellow Tory.
After the row erupted Mr Kawczynski said he had described the situation as immoral because of his belief that it "plays right into the hands" of Russian leader, Vladimir Putin.
He said the UK should be supporting Ukrainian refugees in Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Moldova.
"I feel it is grossly unfair," he said.
"No European country has done more to support and train Ukrainian armed forces and to provide humanitarian assistance to Ukraine."
Asked if Britain should help those Ukrainians who do want to come to Britain, despite its distance from their homeland, Mr Kawczynski said: "Ukrainians who want to come here and claim asylum, yes they should be processed as quickly as possible and we should support them in doing that."
