SNP candidate urged to quit over handling of Linden complaints
FacebookThe leader of the SNP group on North Lanarkshire Council is being urged to resign over her handling of sexual assault allegations against former council leader Jordan Linden.
Tracy Carragher is also facing calls to stand down as an SNP candidate on the Central Scotland list at next month's Holyrood election.
She is accused in a council motion of having ignored or downplayed complaints about Linden, who last week was convicted of sexually assaulting young men and sending sexual messages to boys as young as 14.
The motion, due to be debated on Thursday, calls for Carragher's immediate resignation alongside that of her colleague Fiona Fotheringham.
North Lanarkshire Council - which has been run by a minority Labour administration since 2022 - will also vote on whether to suspend activity with the Scottish Youth Parliament, where Linden previously served as chairman.
Carragher has been asked to comment.
North Lanarkshire CouncilSNP leader John Swinney has refused to say whether he has confidence in Carragher.
She was deputy leader of the council when it was reported in 2022 that Linden had made unwanted advances towards a teenager three years earlier.
In a recording of an emergency meeting of the SNP group at North Lanarkshire Council, held a few days later, Carragher seems to suggest that those who went to newspapers with concerns over Linden's conduct had done so for "personal gain".
She also seems to say that the SNP had told Linden "not to comment", adding that the party "decide what happens".
Cameron McManus, a former SNP councillor who complained about Linden, said he confided in Carragher, but alleged she took no action. He said she was unfit for office.
SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said on Friday that Carragher should "reflect" on candidacy, though the party later issued a partial clarification backing her.
Swinney 'very sorry'
Asked whether she should remain in place as an election candidate, Swinney told BBC Scotland News on Monday that the SNP had "selected our candidates and our candidates are in place".
Asked if he had confidence in Carragher, who is standing on the Central Scotland regional list, he again said the SNP had "selected our candidates and our candidates are in place to fight the election".
McManus and others have accused the party of downplaying or ignoring the allegations.
At the weekend Swinney said he was "very sorry" to those who had suffered. He has also announced an independent review of the SNP's complaints process.
The Sunday Times reported that former SNP councillors had urged Swinney to review the party's complaints process six months ago but had received no reply from the party.
Councillor Greg Lennon, now an independent on North Lanarkshire Council, wrote to the first minister in September, alleging that councillors who raised concerns about Linden had been subject to "prolonged suspension, exclusion, bullying and harassment and a series of unfounded or mishandled complaints".
The letter was also copied to Swinney's predecessor Humza Yousaf, who told BBC Scotland's Sunday Show that the SNP had strengthened its processes as a result of the MeToo movement.
He added: "But the party, of course, should reflect on any complaints that have been made, any criticisms from those who have been victims of inappropriate behaviour, and we should always seek to do better."
An SNP spokesperson said the party had comprehensively reviewed its complaints procedures since 2016 and highlighted that Swinney had ordered an independent review following Linden's conviction.
"This will ensure people are protected and our complaints procedures are as robust as they can be," they said.
"More generally, the SNP welcomes the verdict against Mr Linden and commends the bravery of the individuals who came forward and shared their experiences with the police."
The spokesperson added that the party had responded to the letter.
