logo
Kate Forbes may be banned from Scottish arts venue over trans views

Kate Forbes may be banned from Scottish arts venue over trans views

The National3 hours ago
Summerhall Arts issued an apology for the 'oversight' of letting the Deputy First Minister speak at an event last week due to her past comments according to The Daily Mail, including against Scotland's gender reforms.
She is a member of the Free Church of Scotland and said she would not have backed same-sex marriage if she had been an MSP at the time of the 2014 vote.
Forbes also previously said she would not have backed the Scottish Government's Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill had she not been on maternity leave.
READ MORE: John Swinney interview: The FM on indyref2, Israel, energy and more
Forbes had appeared on August 7 as part of the Herald's Unspun Live at the Fringe – which saw a number of politicians and commentators take to the stage.
The venue's management said they will now develop 'robust, proactive inclusion and wellbeing policies that would prevent this oversight in our bookings process happening again'.
Gender critical campaigners have hit out at the move, suggesting it may be illegal – citing the Stand comedy club, which was forced to reinstate a show featuring ex-SNP MP Joanna Cherry at the Fringe two years ago.
The venue had initially planned to cancel her show because of her trans views before then u-turning when threatened with legal action.
Resounding, Kate Forbes said: 'As I stated at the event, I fervently believe in freedom of speech. Any effort to 'cancel' people, especially politicians, undermines democracy.
'Many people attended the Herald event and it is important that we could freely discuss and debate matters in a respectful manner.
'I respect and acknowledge the fact that in a liberal democracy there are people who will agree with me and others who will disagree with me.
'That is all the more reason to create events where the audience and journalists can question politicians openly, as the Herald did.'
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Tributes paid following the death of ex-Stirling politician and Holyrood Presiding Officer
Tributes paid following the death of ex-Stirling politician and Holyrood Presiding Officer

Daily Record

time11 minutes ago

  • Daily Record

Tributes paid following the death of ex-Stirling politician and Holyrood Presiding Officer

With proud links to both Clackmannanshire and Stirlingshire, he rose from his family's humble beginnings to earn top honours for a lifetime of public service. Tributes are being paid to the Rt Hon Sir George Reid following his death in the early hours of Tuesday morning. ‌ The 86-year-old, who lived in Bridge of Allan, was SNP MP for Clackmannan and East Stirlingshire from 1974 to 1979 and MSP for Ochil from 2003 to 2007. ‌ He was also a former Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament, an Electoral Commissioner and Trustee of the Edinburgh Tattoo and Glasgow Life, and chaired strategic reviews of public bodies in the UK and Europe. ‌ Throughout his life he received many high honours – Lord High Commissioner, Lord-Lieutenant, Knight bachelor - and was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award at Holyrood in 2018, decided on unanimously by senior officials from the Scottish Government, Scotland Office, Scottish Parliament, office of the Auditor General and the Scottish Council of Voluntary Organisations. His father had been born into a desperately poor family and worked his way up from office boy to managing director of an Alloa brewery. Sir George graduated with first-class honours from St Andrews University and later studied international affairs, humanitarian law and conflict resolution in the United States of America, Switzerland and Sweden, and held five honorary doctorates. ‌ For 12 years between his time at Westminster and Holyrood he worked worldwide in wars and disasters as a director of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent in Geneva. Sir George served as Deputy Presiding Officer from 1999 to 2003, and then as Presiding Officer from 2003 to 2007. He was elected as MSP for the Mid Scotland and Fife region from 1999 to 2003 and then for the Ochil constituency from 2003 to 2007. During his time as Presiding Officer, he oversaw the completion of the new Scottish Parliament building, opening in 2004. He was also MP for Clackmannan and East Stirlingshire from 1974 to 1979. The Scottish Parliament's Presiding Officer, Rt Hon Alison Johnstone MSP, was among those who paid tribute. ‌ She said: 'On behalf of all at the Scottish Parliament, I express our deepest sadness at the death of our second Presiding Officer, The Rt Hon Sir George Reid. He'll be remembered not only for bringing the Holyrood construction project to completion, but for building confidence and ambition in our young Parliament. 'A proud son of Clackmannanshire and an internationalist by outlook, he was determined to put Holyrood on the map at home and abroad, and very much succeeded. By the time he left office, Holyrood was established at the centre of public life in Scotland and over a million people had visited to see for themselves the new Parliament in action. ‌ 'The story of devolution and the early years of our Parliament will remember George fondly and with gratitude. 'My deepest condolences to Daphne, his daughter and grandchildren and his many friends and colleagues. Sir George was welcoming and supportive to me, in Holyrood and outwith. He will be very much missed. ‌ 'Flags at Holyrood have been lowered as a mark of respect.' A book of condolence was expected to open at Holyrood and online. ‌ On being appointed a Knight of the Thistle - the highest honour in Scotland - in 2022, Sir George said: 'It's a substantial honour for a Tullibody boy. I hope people will still call me George. 'I'm 83 now and intend to keep teaching postgraduates at the University of Stirling. That and seeing the family is my main focus.' Sir George was knighted in 2012 for services to Scottish politics and public life. He was a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and a Professorial Teaching Fellow at the University of Stirling. In 2008 Sir George was appointed Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland and then served as Lord Lieutenant of Clackmannanshire from 2011 to 2014.

Government take action on Sheffield Wednesday crisis as Owls fans plan 'funeral march'
Government take action on Sheffield Wednesday crisis as Owls fans plan 'funeral march'

Daily Mirror

time12 minutes ago

  • Daily Mirror

Government take action on Sheffield Wednesday crisis as Owls fans plan 'funeral march'

Sheffield Wednesday fans will step up protests against owner Dejphon Chansiri this weekend while the government has responded to concerns over the club's future The government is fast-tracking the introduction of the independent football regulator (IFR) amid the continued crisis at Sheffield Wednesday. The Labour Party are said to be pushing through secondary legislation which will see the IFR in place by November. ‌ Wednesday are in a mess under the ownership of Thai tuna magnate Dejphon Chansiri, starting the season with only 16 registered first-team players after a raft of exits. ‌ Chansiri failed to pay players and staff on time in four of the last five months, though monies owed are now up to date while an embargo on the club has been lifted after outstanding transfer fees were also satisfied. ‌ The Owls are, however, unable to spend fees on players until the summer of 2027 and look set to face a certain points deduction in the Championship. Sheffield MP Clive Betts is a huge Wednesday fan and has urged the government to speed up the process of getting the IFR in place. The Athletic report Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy is now leading the push which could help Wednesday and other crisis clubs, such as Morecambe. Under a new bill, the IFR will have the power to strip unfit owners of their right to run clubs and could sanction takeovers at a price of their choice. ‌ 'The ongoing challenges at Morecambe, Sheffield Wednesday and many other clubs before them show exactly why the Football Governance Act was needed and why we acted to push the legislation forward in the face of opposition,' a spokesperson for the Department for Media, Culture and Sport said. 'The launch of the IFR is a priority. We recognise the need to move forward as quickly as possible whether that be implementing the required secondary legislation or appointing the regulator's board.' ‌ The Shrimps are on the brink of extinction having been suspended by the National League due to concerns over their financial stability while owner Jason Whittingham stalls on selling the club to Panjab Warriors. Owls fans took part in a protest against Chansiri in their Championship opener at Leicester on Saturday, leaving the away end empty for the first five minutes of the fixture. A plane also flew over the stadium urging him to sell up. The club's supporters trust has now confirmed further protests for their first home game of the season against Stoke after a crowdfunding page raised over £13,000 to fund such action. ‌ Fans will walk through Hillsborough Park on a 'funeral march' carrying a coffin to the stadium. Betts will be among the speakers at the protest with ex-Wednesday players also set to address fans. Supporters opting not to attend the match will continue to protest while the fixture is ongoing, while fans inside the ground have been urged to limit any disruption to the game to the first five minutes so it is not abandoned.

Sir George Reid obituary: Respected SNP politician and journalist
Sir George Reid obituary: Respected SNP politician and journalist

BBC News

time12 minutes ago

  • BBC News

Sir George Reid obituary: Respected SNP politician and journalist

Sir George Reid, who has died aged 86, enjoyed a long career in and out of politics, in which he managed to be one of the SNP's bright young things and elder between, he worked as a journalist and television presenter before moving into public affairs with the Red Cross, a job which took him around the world to disaster zones and international emergencies - an experience which influenced his later political being elected to the Scottish Parliament in 1999 he served as its Presiding Officer between 2003 and 2007, a period in which he was widely credited with taking control of the Holyrood building set him up for a final act in public life where he became a visiting academic, an independent reviewer of public bodies, and the Queen's representative to the Church of Scotland.A member of a political party whose motivating factor is radical change of the British state, his intellect, talent for diplomacy and personal charm made him at once an establishment figure and a politician beloved of the national movement. George Reid was born in Tullibody in 1939 and educated at the private Dollar Academy. From there he read history at the University of St Andrews before further study in Switzerland and the US, an early example of the internationalism and interest in foreign affairs which would inform his political went into journalism in newspapers and entered broadcasting as the industry enjoyed its first flourish in Scotland, working for the BBC as well as Grampian and Scottish Television.A respected operator, he moved between news programmes and current affairs documentaries but was not content to be an observer of his nation's politics. In February 1974 he was elected to Westminster as the MP for Clackmannan and East Stirlingshire, one of six new SNP was a crucial election for his party. It was a time of economic and political crisis towards the end of Ted Heath's Conservative government and the SNP built its campaign around the motto "It's Scotland's Oil". It paid off. The seven MPs elected went south to sit in opposition to Harold Wilson's new minority Labour government, which lasted just eight months before having to go to the country October 1974 result became a transformative moment in the SNP's history. Reid was re-elected, this time one of the "first eleven" MPs, the most they had ever elected. They were a small though voluble band of MPs and Reid used his time at Westminster to develop his links with politicians across Europe. He was also something of a media star, a smart and articulate performer who was valued by programme makers and his first half of his political career came to an end in the 1979 election which saw Margaret Thatcher come to power. That group of SNP MPs would forever be criticised for voting against the government in the confidence vote which triggered the election. The 1980s saw Reid returning to journalism, presenting political programmes for BBC Scotland. He worked on coverage of the famine in Africa, a job which later led to him joining the international aid organisation the Red in Geneva, he spent the next period travelling the world working on emergency relief projects. A public speech in 1995 was seen by many as return to Scottish politics, though his Donaldson Lecture drew deeply on his knowledge of European politics. He stood once again for his former constituency again in 1997 but was 1999, and approaching his 60th birthday, he was once again elected to parliament - this time in Edinburgh. He threw his hat in the ring to become the Scottish Parliament's first Presiding Officer, losing to Sir David he was made a Deputy Presiding Officer, holding the post through the parliament's difficult first few years. The biggest problem throughout that period was the Holyrood building project, which after a controversial selection process quickly spiralled out of control with a delivery date forever moving away into the distance and a budget which just kept on getting bigger and Reid took over from Steel in 2003, he made a huge effort to get on top of what had become a national embarrassment. He demanded regular reports and updated the parliament with the same regularity. He was filmed and photographed in hard hat and tabard walking the media through the building, explaining the issues and identifying he was the front of house man when it finally opened in 2004. His speech on that day struck a hopeful note, saying Scotland could now be more confident in the institution. He said it was now a country where "if we make mistakes they are our mistakes, and we can no longer blame anyone else". After leaving the parliament at the end of his term in 2007, he became a sought-after figure in politics outside was chosen to lead a review of the Northern Ireland Assembly. His report called for reform of the way Stormont was run, including greater autonomy for the assembly and its civil 2008 he became the Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, making him the monarch's representative on the would go on to review the governance of the National Trust for Scotland, delivering a report which was used to radically reshape the body after years of criticism of its performance and his seventies he had certainly become that elder statesman figure and was knighted - an unusual thing for an SNP figure - in 2012. Ten years later he was appointed a Knight of the Order of the Thistle, the most senior order of chivalry in a period of ill health in 2013, he remained until recently a cogent commentator with a quick mind and wit. Popular with journalists and his fellow nationalists, he enjoyed a good public image and was still in demand in the media and on the political tribute to his late colleague Winnie Ewing in 2023, he addressed the SNP's Independence Convention in Dundee about the importance of politics as a vocation."Don't make excuses, make improvements," he said. "Do things with the people of Scotland, not to the people."Concentrate on those who are still to be convinced. Keep right on to the end of the road."Those words for his former colleague will probably do for him too.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store