NHS Fife board block public questions after Peggie tribunal

The Herald Scotland

21 hours ago

Senior leadership, including chief executive Carol Potter - who faces calls to resign - will be in attendance at the meeting on Tuesday, August 12.
While members of the public and journalists can attend the meeting at Victoria Hospital in person, there will be no opportunity to question health board chiefs.
It is the first time health board executives had publicly met since evidence concluded in Ms Peggie's tribunal in July.
The nurse at Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy is suing her employer and Dr Beth Upton after Ms Peggie was suspended for objecting to the transgender medic's use of the female changing rooms on Christmas Eve 2023.
She also made reference to the situation being similar to men being housed in the female prison estate.
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Ms Peggie was placed on special leave in December 2023 and suspended in January 2024 – but was cleared of all misconduct allegations on July 15 2025, including two patient safety concerns.
NHS Fife updated its policy on Monday morning to add new media attendance guidelines specifically for board meetings.
The changes state include a range of new rules for attendees, including: "No questions or comments may be directed from the public or media to the Board, during the meeting, no photography, filming or audio recording is permitted at any time, all mobile phones and devices must be switched off throughout the meeting."
It also said: "No interviews will be given before or after the meetings unless pre-arranged through the NHS Fife Communications Team."
Press and the public were also told to apply in advance to attend the meeting.
A statement by NHS Fife said the changes were made due to "wider media interest" the board has experienced in recent months.
Scottish Tory MSP Murdo Fraser, who represents the Mid Scotland and Fife region, told The Herald: 'This is another appalling example of NHS Fife's addiction to secrecy.
'Banning journalists from questioning senior board members isn't just unfair to the public who are desperate for answers, it reeks of an arrogant lack of accountability – and underlines the need for those at the top of the board to go.
'SNP ministers should intervene and order NHS Fife to be open and transparent, rather than allowing them to evade scrutiny at every turn.'
A spokesperson for NHS Fife said: "Unfortunately, our current facilities do not allow us to livestream our Board meetings.
"NHS Fife Board meetings are meetings held in public, where attendees are invited to observe proceedings.
The rules in place around NHS Fife Board meetings are designed both to ensure the professional and orderly conduct of proceedings, and to allow board members to properly scrutinise the papers presented.
"Local media routinely attend our Board meetings, where these practices have been in place for some time and are reiterated at start of each meeting. However, given the wider media interest we have recently updated the press and media section of our website to reflect this practice."
The Herald last month revealed the health board would not say whether it was investigating a nurse who shared confidential patient information in a group chat with other colleagues.
Meanwhile, the tribunal also heard how Dr Upton altered notes written on their phone to include allegations of Ms Peggie's patient safety concerns following the changing room dispute between the pair.
Dozens of witnesses gave evidence in the tribunal, while gender critical group For Women Scotland lodged a written intervention in the case after Employment Judge Sandy Kemp described the landmark Supreme Court ruling on the definition of a woman as "contentious".
The tribunal resumes for oral submissions on September 1 and 2, with both legal teams appearing in person in Dundee.
However, it is unlikely a decision will be made on the day, with the judge expected to take a significant period of time to consider the evidence.
It could be until December before a judgment is declared.