Pledgeover Bennison walk-out
An SNP councillor has vowed to continue to work with fellow ward member Maureen Bennison following her shock resignation from the party last week.
Bannockburn ward councillor Ms Bennison – the partner of former Stirling MP Steven Paterson – resigned from the SNP last week claiming there had been bullying, sexism and party in-fighting.
But this week SNP councillor Alasdair Macpherson, who acknowedged he had had his own ups and downs with party members at times, vowed to continue to work with Councillor Bennison on certain issues and on anything affecting their Bannockburn ward.
Councillor Macpherson said: “Maureen’s resignation came as a shock to me and I’m sorry she’s left the SNP.
“Maureen and I are both cut from the same cloth, being born and raised in our former mining villages, so the socialist values that we share made her a much valued comrade.
“It’s no secret that I have also had some big disagreements with party members, but the SNP is the only party that is serious about tackling poverty and inequality, so I decided a long time ago to battle from the inside of the party to deliver these goals.
“Maureen and I have agreed to continue to work closely on issues affecting our ward, one of them being the cruel and despicable two-child benefit cap or the ‘‘rape clause’, introduced by the Tories, which is now causing serious harm to our constituents.”
In a letter to Stirling Council leader Scott Farmer last week, Councillor Bennison had said “toxic abuse and threats” had been dished out by elements within the party on any woman prepared to speak out about concerns over the Scottish Government’s proposed changes to gender recognition.
She further alleged that the situation had “come to the fore” since the installation of current Stirling MP Alyn Smith as the party’s Westminister candidate.
She also claimed Mr Smith had “consistently refused to condemn frequent vile abuse spouted on social media” and that some within the party intended to deselect her at the next council elections because she refused to canvas for him.
While she intends to continue to represent the ward, some of her former SNP colleagues – who accused her of being “bitter” and of casting “untrue assertions” – have called for her to stand down to allow a by-election to be held.