A ROW over “transphobia” has embroiled the Scottish Greens as the party opens its internal elections.
Members of the pro-independence party, which has two ministers in the Scottish Government, will vote on various internal positions from July 19 – but one candidate in particular has caused controversy.
David Jardine, who is standing to become co-convener of the party’s Conduct and Complaints Committee, has faced accusations of engaging in “right-wing, transphobic talking points that have no place in the Scottish Greens”.
READ MORE: Greens rule out joining independence convention with Alba
Various groups within the party – including the Women’s Network, Young Greens, Rainbow Greens, and Trade Union Group – put in a complaint about Jardine’s nomination.
It came after he penned a statement asking for members’ votes in which he claimed the Scottish Greens had “become intolerant and exclusionary”.
Jardine (below) said that “party members have been suspended and expelled or driven out by an aggressive faction which has scapegoated folk who believe that one's sex is determined by biology”.
He accused that “faction” of having “created a hostile environment”, adding: “The core objective of Green politics is sustainability. To achieve that we need – among other things – to be a broad church, not a narrow exclusionary sect.
“The cause is urgent and we need to get along with our fellow members as we find them, not as we would like them to be.”
A complaint about Jardine’s statement, seen by The National and put in to the committee he is aiming to co-convene, claimed his words were “aggressive, threatening and prejudicial”.
“The statement is transphobic and exclusionary towards non-binary people,” it said.
It is understood that the complaint, which claimed Jardine’s statement was “likely to cause extreme offence”, was dismissed and nominations published as they were.
READ MORE: SNP minister apologises as WhatsApp leak reveals 'not acceptable' comments
One Green member told this paper that the decision to publish the nomination “with the transphobia and attacks on the party” was “the ‘party of trans rights’ throwing trans people under the bus”.
Another said that, at a hustings held on Monday, Jardine was “clearly advocating for the rights and views of Terfs (in his words), and was questioning the party's tolerance of sex-based rights. All right-wing, transphobic talking points that have no place in the Scottish Greens”.
Jardine told The National that he had not heard any mention of a complaint put in about him and seemed surprised at the number of groups to have been involved in its submission.
He said: “It is an internal election so I don’t really want to say too much about it at the moment. I will say that I find what you are telling me fascinating. I have been careful not to say anything that could be deemed transphobic.”
Jardine added: “Worse things happen at sea.”
Jardine is running against Paul Rodger and Nettie Sutherland for the one-year position as the co-convener of the complaints committee.
The internal elections will also see elections of members of the Greens’ policy committee, elections committee, standing orders committee, and members and fundraising committee, among others.
The co-leader positions, currently held by Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater, are also up for election. However, the two incumbents are running unopposed.
Ballots open on Wednesday July 19 and close the following week, on July 26.
The results are to be publicly announced to members on July 28, with candidates informed the day prior.
A Scottish Greens spokesperson said: "We do not comment on internal processes or leaks. Our absolute commitment to inclusion and equality is reflected in our code of conduct and our policies. The Scottish Green Party will always stand with our LGBTQIA+ communities."
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