Louise Mensch: troll abuse 'not Twitter's fault' They have to be responsible for their own words and what they say. She added: "I thought it was probably worth my while, just as an exercise, taking a few [examples] of the abuse that women of all sides of the political aisle receive every day on Twitter, putting them in favourites and letting people see what goes on. I just wanted to put it up there to let people see and I was overwhelmed with the massive response I got on Twitter from everybody saying how much they supported it. The stuff I was subjected to was not illegal it was just immoral and misogynistic. It's people who think they can hide behind the anonymity of a screen name that feel free to throw racist abuse and sexist abuse. It really is just a matter of calling bullies out. Stuart Hyde, Chief Constable of Cumbria Police and lead on e-crime prevention for the Association of Chief Police Officers, said the remarks about Mrs Mensch were "horrendous" and "sexist bigotry at its worst." Asked what action police could take against trolls he added: "There is quite a bit of legislation available to us; the Communications Act 2003 and the Malicious Communications Act back in 1988 talks about communications with intent to cause distress and anxiety or [which are] grossly offensive. We are taking people to court. People do need to understand that while this is a social media it's also a media with responsibilities and if you are going to act illegally using social media expect to face the full consequences of the law. Accepting that this is fairly new, even for policing...we do need to take action where necessary. The insults directed at Mrs Mensch, most of which are too explicit to be repeated, included references to her appearance, sexuality and even threatened criminal violence. Some accused her of engaging an intimate relationship with Rupert Murdoch while others speculated crudely as to whether they found her attractive. Highlighting the abuse on Twitter, she told her 50,000 followers: "Women too often shamed into silence. Sod it. A second, from Jared Earle, asked: "If @LouiseMensch supports @rupertmurdoch and News International, will she be doing Page 3?" He has now said the message was not misogynistic but ironic, to indicate his belief that "Page 3 is sexist and I am at odds with Mensch's support of it." He added: "I stand by my stance that supporting Rupert Murdoch while, at the same time, railing against misogyny is hypocritical, but I do regret, if nothing else, the timing of my statement. He later clarified: "My comments have been taken hugely out of context. I am not sexist at all this is absurd. One commentator said they were trying to be "humorous not abusive" and that bullying and misogyny are unacceptable. #SoIsStiflingPoliticalCorrectness, they added. Another responded: "I care not a jot. Politicians and journalists in this country are joke figures. Website Vice has already conducted a poll among Occupy London protestors, to establish: "Would you have sex with Louise Mensch?"