JACOB Rees-Mogg has compared SNP leadership candidate Kate Forbes to Mary Queen of Scots following the row over some of her views.
Scotland’s Finance Secretary lost some of her key endorsements after saying that she would have voted against equal marriage laws were she an MSP when the vote was held.
Asked about her views on having children out of wedlock, Forbes told Sky News that it was something she would “seek to avoid for me personally”.
In a column in the Daily Mail, Rees-Mogg said that anybody who wished to “destroy the United Kingdom”, which he described as “the most successful political union in history”, don’t normally “deserve sympathy”.
READ MORE: McCrone Report: Why is Scotland so energy rich in renewables?
However, he then wrote: “The treatment of Kate Forbes, purely because of her religious belief, shows an intolerance that is growing like a canker in the body politic.
“The last Scottish female public figure to be treated so badly for her religion was Mary, Queen of Scots, who was chased out of her country and eventually beheaded by her cousin Elizabeth for her Catholicism.”
Forbes is a member of the Free Church of Scotland which has already condemned the “anti-Christian intolerance” shown to the leadership hopeful.
Rees-Mogg’s column continued: “All she has done is express, as a member of the Free Church of Scotland, views that are held by millions of Christians across the world and have been usual in British society since the end of the Dark Ages.”
He said the reaction was as though Forbes wanted “to turn Scotland into Iran” and that she simply wanted freedom to express her views – something the “bigots of the left” found it “impossible” to accept.
Rees-Mogg added that the Conservative Party is “the only party that tolerates a range of opinions, accepting freedom of religion and conscience” and that it “allowed free votes on these issues”.
The SNP leadership race remains ongoing with Forbes emerging as the favourite to replace Nicola Sturgeon in a poll commissioned by The Sunday Times.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel