Liberal candidate Simon Kennedy calls Covid-19 vaccines ‘chemicals’ to ‘be concerned’ about

A Liberal Party candidate has appeared in a video telling anti-vaxxers there’s “reason to be concerned” about the safety of mRNA vaccines.

A Liberal Party candidate vying for the Sydney seat of Bennelong has appeared in a video organised by an anti-lockdown movement where he expresses concern about the speed at which Covid-19 vaccines were rolled out.

Simon Kennedy was featured in a video for A Stand in the Park — a group that organises meetings for like-minded individuals who do not support vaccine mandates.

The video, unearthed by ABC News, shows Mr Kennedy speaking with a handful of people at a park in Sydney.

“We have flipped into a society where we are acting on fear rather than confidence,” he tells them.

Former Australian Prime Minister John Howard making his campaign debut for the Liberal Bennelong candidate Simon Kennedy at Ryde Eastwood Leagues Club. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Simon Bullard

He says that his wife is an infectious diseases doctor who tells him people should be concerned about vaccine mandates like those rolled out around Australia that force individuals to be jabbed to keep their jobs.

“She tells me, ‘I get there’s reason to be concerned,’” he says.

“There is reason to be concerned and I think each individual, it should be up to them to have the choice to say, they’re the ones bearing the risk, of what happens to your body and what happens to that.

“That should be individual like it is with every other vaccine in society.

“People losing their jobs. I have an enormous amount of empathy for that.

“It wasn’t a situation any individual put themselves in. They were being forced. They had to choose, do I take this course of action and put these chemicals in my body?”

Prime Minister Scott Morrison dodged a question about the Liberal candidate’s views on Tuesday when speaking with reporters.

“Are you comfortable with one of your candidates, Simon Kennedy, addressing a conspiracy theory group in Bennelong and labelling vaccines ‘chemicals’?” the PM was asked.

“I’m not aware of those reports so I can’t comment on them,” Mr Morrison said.

Mr Kennedy, who had his official campaign launched on Saturday by former prime minister John Howard, told Nine News he called the vaccine a “chemical” because “it’s got preservatives”.

Liberal candidate for Bennelong Simon Kennedy's comments on the Covid vaccine are hair-raising. Asked by @9NewsAUS why he called the vaccine a 'chemical' to a group of antivaxxers he offers "well, it's got preservatives"

— Tash Robinson 🌻 (@NC_Robinson) April 26, 2022

In a statement on Tuesday, Mr Kennedy said he and his family were vaccinated and he is a supporter of the vaccine program.

“My support for our vaccination program is strongly informed by my wife’s work as an infectious disease doctor, who worked on the Covid response as a clinician and researcher,” he told Nine newspapers.

“Blanket mandates are a complex and emotive issue, and I think it’s important that we have respectful conversations even with people that have different views than your own and help to stop the spread of disinformation.”

Originally published as Liberal candidate Simon Kennedy calls Covid-19 vaccines ‘chemicals’ to ‘be concerned’ about