JOHN Swinney has been urged to push for an “urgent apology” from the White House over false claims made by JD Vance around abortion buffer zones.
The US vice president claimed that Scots who prayed in their homes could be prosecuted after the recent introduction of buffer zones around Scottish abortion clinics.
The Scottish Greens urged the First Minister to ask Prime Minister Keir Starmer to demand an apology when he meets US president Donald Trump next week.
Speaking during First Minister’s Questions on Thursday, Scottish Greens co-leader Lorna Slater said: “The White House manufactures mistruths, tech billionaires profit from them and bad faith actors spread them.
“Disinformation is playing an increasingly dangerous role in our communities and in global politics.
“Promoting lies and misinformation, at home and abroad, can have serious consequences for all our communities. Friendly countries do not tell lies about each other.
“Does the First Minister agree that political leaders everywhere must stand up to disinformation – and will he ask Keir Starmer to demand an urgent apology from the White House when the Prime Minister meets Trump next week?”
Swinney responded: “I think the Prime Minister is well able to engage in dialogue with the president of the United States and I very much welcome the engagement of the Prime Minister in the European dialogue which took place earlier this week on the situation in Ukraine.
“I think that we are living in an era where disinformation is regularly circulated in our political discourse.
“I think it is harming our political discourse, I think we have plenty of evidence of it in our parliament, and I certainly want to be one of those individuals who stands up for the clarity of information, who speaks truth to parliament.”
He was then interrupted by Scottish Labour’s Jackie Baillie who said: “Seriously?”
The buffer zone legislation passed the Scottish Parliament in a historic moment last year, and sees anti-abortion protests within 200m of abortion service providers banned.
The law does not prohibit anyone from praying within their own homes, as Vance claimed.
On Wednesday, the first arrest was made under the legislation, after a 74-year-old woman was charged after allegedly breaching the law outside the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.
Slater said Vance’s claims were “grossly misleading” and that protesters had been “emboldened” by his comments.
She said: “This week, US Vice President JD Vance has spread misinformation about laws made in this Scottish Parliament. “His claims about my colleague Gillian Mackay’s Safe Access Zones Act are grossly misleading.
“Emboldened by Mr Vance’s comments, anti-choice groups have already started to target patients outside the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Glasgow, with more actions planned in coming weeks.
“Last summer, members of this Parliament agreed overwhelmingly that everyone should be able to access abortion services free from harassment.
“What is the First Minister doing to correct false claims and provide clarity to the public on what the buffer zones mean for them, and how will he protect safe access to healthcare in Scotland?”
Swinney responded by emphasising his support for safe access zones, saying: “The remarks made by the vice president of the United States last week about the safe access zones legislation in Scotland were untrue – they were incorrect.
“The idea that private prayer in an individual’s home is in any way contradicted or constrained by this legislation is just not correct.”
The First Minister encouraged people to read online guidance on buffer zones published by the Scottish Government.
