THE Scottish Conservatives provided a “classic example” of the abuse women face in politics with their attacks on Nicola Sturgeon last week, First Minister John Swinney has said.
The SNP leader called out his Scottish Tory counterpart after talking about the treatment of women in politics in Edinburgh on Monday.
Swinney had been asked a question about the number of SNP MSPs who have said they will not stand again in 2026.
As it stands, 23 MSPs elected for the SNP in 2021 have said they will not run again next year. The majority of them (14) are women.
Swinney was asked if the numbers mean the SNP have a “woman issue”. He responded: “No, I don’t think that.
“I think there are some big issues about how women feel in public life because of the amount of abuse that’s hurled about.
“We had a classic example of it, last week, from Russell Findlay at First Minister’s Questions, where he used four questions to, basically, hurl abuse at a woman.”
The Scottish Tory leader used his questions at the weekly session on Thursday to attack Sturgeon, whom he described as having a “vast back catalogue of failure”.
It came after a statement from Scottish Tory depute leader Rachael Hamilton, issued in response to the news that Sturgeon would not stand in 2026, which Swinney suggested was “graceless”.
“The reason Russell highlighted Nicola Sturgeon’s record is because it’s truly dismal and John Swinney supported her every step of the way.
“We wouldn’t be doing our job as an opposition party if we ignored the many policy failures and broken promises of Nicola Sturgeon and John Swinney, which continue to negatively affect Scots’ lives.
“As for the number of women SNP MSPs stepping down, perhaps this is a reaction to Stephen Flynn bulldozing aside a sitting female MSP in a bid to land a Holyrood seat, and John Swinney doing nothing about it.”
Speaking on Monday, the First Minister added that he was “very pleased” with the female candidates in his party who are seeking election next year.
“I want to give every signal I possibly can do, I want to encourage women to participate in public life and in politics and to come forward for election and for us to benefit from their contribution,” he said.
As well as Sturgeon, former first minister Humza Yousaf and current cabinet secretaries Shona Robison, Fiona Hyslop, and Mairi Gougeon will stand down, as will junior ministers Natalie Don-Innes, Graeme Dey, Richard Lochhead, and Christina McKelvie – who is currently on leave receiving cancer treatment.
Former health secretary Michael Matheson, who resigned after a months-long saga over a near-£11,000 iPad bill racked up by his children while on holiday, announced he would not seek re-election on Sunday.
But despite the exodus from the SNP benches, the party’s chief whip in Westminster, Kirsty Blackman, said there was a “huge amount of talent among proposed candidates”.
Many of those looking to stand are current and former MPs, including Westminster leader Flynn.
