NHS Fife under pressure over Peggie tribunal statement

The Herald Scotland

6 days ago

It was widely criticised and has since been edited a number of times, including twice on Sunday.
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Monday's hearing was delayed as the two legal teams held private discussions with Employment Judge Sandy Kemp.
Ms Peggie's lawyers would not discuss what was said, but 'confirmed that they have asked Fife Health Board to confirm the names of those individuals who signed off the statement they issued on Friday and still await a reply'.
The initial statement referenced the CEO of Sex Matters, Maya Forstater, who has already given evidence, and the group's chair, barrister Naomi Cunningham KC, who is leading Ms Peggie's case.
The next paragraph stated that while the case had attracted 'significant and very polarised debate' on social media, 'what began as debate has evolved into much more worrying behaviour, including a threat of physical harm and sexual violence, which has required the involvement of Police Scotland'.
During Friday's hearing, Ms Peggie's barrister, Charlotte Elves, told the tribunal: 'Paragraph four of the statement seems to conclude that [Sex Matters' involvement] has resulted in more worrying behaviour that has involved Police Scotland.
'It is a matter of some concern that a party to proceedings seems to link a witness in these proceedings with the conduct of members of the public, including threats of physical violence.'
The statement was later amended to say that 'NHS Fife was not seeking to suggest that anyone involved with Sex Matters have contributed to the behaviour or issues mentioned above'.
It was then edited again to remove mention of Ms Cunningham and Ms Forstater.
By Monday, all reference to Sex Matters had been removed.
The Peggie tribunal resumed last week after a five-month adjournment. Ms Peggie, an A&E nurse at Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy, is suing the board and Dr Beth Upton after she was suspended for raising objections to the trans woman doctor's use of a female changing room on Christmas Eve 2023.
The row comes as political pressure on the board increases.
Scottish Labour politicians Melanie Ward and Claire Baker met Ms Peggie on Monday morning.
Taking to X, Ms Ward, the MP for Cowdenbeath and [[Kirkcaldy]], said her constituents were 'losing faith' in the board.
She said: 'This morning @clairebakermsp & I met with Sandie Peggie, who I have spoken in support of in Parliament.
'Sandie has 30 years' service as a nurse at the Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy and should never have had to take legal action to uphold her right to change in a single-sex space.
'This is the SNP's Scotland, where ideology trumps the law.
'Constituents are rapidly losing faith in the leadership of NHS Fife.
'Both their position and that of the [[SNP]] Scottish Health Secretary Neil Gray MSP is increasingly untenable.'
This morning @clairebakermsp & I met with Sandie Peggie, who I have spoken in support of in Parliament.
Sandie has 30 years' service as a nurse at the Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy & should never have had to take legal action to uphold her right to change in a single sex space. pic.twitter.com/pPRNAUe3OY — Melanie Ward MP (@melanie_ward) July 21, 2025
Scottish Conservative MSP Murdo Fraser said if the Chief Executive and the board did not step down, the First Minister, John Swinney, should intervene.
'As an MSP representing Fife, I have been appalled by the treatment of my constituent, a nurse with 30 years of unblemished service, who was suspended by her employers because she complained about the presence of a biological male 'trans woman' in the women's changing room at her hospital,' he said.
'What we've seen over the past few weeks in the employment tribunal taken by Sandie Peggie is an appalling catalogue of failure on the part of NHS Fife and its mistreatment of their employee.
'I believe we are now at the point where the public have lost confidence in NHS Fife and its management. Its Chief Executive and the board must step down, and if they will not do so voluntarily, then John Swinney the First Minister needs to come out of hiding and sack them and restore public confidence in this failing institution.'
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On Monday, the tribunal heard from Lottie Myles, a service manager at NHS Fife who was tasked with reviewing Ms Peggie's suspension.
She said that despite complaints from Dr Upton about Ms Peggie's practice — including an accusation she walked out on seeing a patient — the incident had not been escalated or reported in the correct manner at the time.
Lottie Myles said she didn't want to go on hearsay (Image: Iain Masterton) Ms Myles also said she had been told by other NHS Fife staff — including Dr Upton's line manager, Dr Kate Searle — that Ms Peggie had previously been involved in racist incidents in the workplace, including using a racial slur to describe a consultant.
However, Ms Myles said these incidents had never been reported or documented. She added she was not willing to use 'hearsay' when deciding whether Ms Peggie should return to work.
Ms Myles said: 'There were views that Sandie was homophobic and there were elements of racism in her beliefs. It's hearsay. I try to disregard views which haven't been documented or there's little evidence of.'
She added: 'I wanted both parties to be treated fairly and equally. The situation was 'she said/ she said', we were limited on witnesses and things being documented.'
Ms Myles said: 'I actually challenged that by saying: 'Why wasn't this documented? Why wasn't it escalated?' Nobody could confirm, but I felt that was hearsay. I felt that to try to prevent any other allegations from happening having a senior team member on duty would be supportive for her.'
She said it was agreed to put the pair on 'opposite shifts' and for Ms Peggie to be supervised during a phased return, describing it as a 'compromise', the tribunal heard.
Ms Myles said that her involvement ceased around April 19 at the request of head of nursing Gillian Malone, and she had no role in the investigation.
The tribunal continues.