Sturgeon under fire as she axes minister after a day
● Opposition says the First Minister’s judgment in question over blog row
Nicola Sturgeon knew Gillian Martin had made disparaging remarks about people who change gender when she attempted to make her a minister, it emerged yesterday.
The First Minister’s judgment was attacked after she was forced to reverse her decision to promote Ms Martin to the Scottish Government on a deeply embarrassing day for Ms Sturgeon.
Controversy over remarks made by Ms Martin in a blog dominated the final day of the parliamentary term and raised questions over the vetting procedures in place for potential ministers.
Ms Martin suffered the ignominy of having her job taken from her before her nomination could be ratified by MSPS, bringing an end to the shortest ministerial career in the history of Holyrood.
The row erupted shortly after Ms Martin was proposed as further education minister and it emerged she had asked if efforts to promote transgender rights would lead to images of “hairy knuckled, lipstick-wearing laydees” appearing in colleges.
In the blog, written before she entered politics and worked as a lecturer in further education, the Aberdeenshire East MSP also questioned cash set aside for trans people.
She said: “How much extra money will the undisclosed establishment get due to the fact that the EU clearly have a tranny trove? What will they use it for? Will they install a third category of loo with a special transgender sign?”
Ms Martin had also written about college PR people using disabled people in photo opportunities.
She wrote: “[They – PR people] froth at the mouth with excitement if anyone in a wheelchair does anything
that can be remotely described as an achievement.”
The contents of her blog were reported within hours of Ms Martin being put forward by Ms Sturgeon as a member of her government and led to calls for her removal.
Following the outcry, Ms Sturgeon withdrew Ms Martin’s nomination just before MSPS were due to formally vote on the make-up of the First Minister’s reshuffled government. Msmartinwaswithdrawn as it became clear her elevation would be opposed by opposition parties.
Ms Sturgeon’s decision not to put Ms Martin forward came as Holyrood broke up for the summer and potentially leaves her without a minister in a key portfolio for the two-month break. Later Ms Sturgeon’s spokesman confirmed the First Minister had been aware of at least some of the views expressed in Ms Martin’s blog before she decided to make her a minister.
The spokesman said Ms Martin’s comments on trans people had been “well aired” in previous newspaper articles when she was an SNP candidate in 2016.
The spokesman added the remarks “by and large were comments which were known about by everyone”.
According to the spokesman, Ms Sturgeon had taken the decision not to promote the Aberdeenshire East MSP at 11am yesterday when she became aware of other opinions expressed in her blog, which were about to be made public.
The comments that Ms Sturgeon did take exception to were later read out in Parliament by Scottish Conservative deputy leader Jackson Carlaw.
The offending blog post saw Ms Martin talk about her experience working in an American restaurant and included a discussion about how waiters ranked tipping habits by nationality.
According to Ms Martin, waiters in question were “all black ghetto New Orleans lads to a man”.
Ms Martin reported the waiters’ views of “American Jews”, who “tip OK, but only if you’ve absolutely busted your hump and everything was faultless in the extreme. Often complain about the quality of the food and then the small portions”.
The blog went on to discuss views of “American Blacks”, who “don’t tip at all or tip next to nothing – to be avoided. The waiters (also black, remember) would do anything to avoid serving a table of blacks or be openly disappointed if allocated one”.
Ms Sturgeon’s spokesman acknowledged Ms Martin’s account of tipping behaviour had shifted the balance when it came to the decision not to allow her name to go forward.
In parliament, Mr Carlaw said Ms Martin’s appointment should have been “underpinned by a vetting procedure that is fit for purpose”.
At First Minister’s Questions yesterday, Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard said: “The point is this – the First Minister knew about these comments and proposed to put Gillian Martin in charge of further and higher education. In the end this is not just about the judgment of Gillian Martin. First Minister, this is about your judgment, isn’t it?”
Labour’s Rhoda Grant said that if Ms Sturgeon believed Ms Martin was not fit to be a minister: “Is Gillian Martin really fit to be a member of the Scottish Parliament?”
In a statement, Ms Martin said: “I fully accept and understand the decision that the First Minister has taken.
“In a blog I wrote 11 years ago across a range of issues, I used language that was inappropriate and offensive. I reported comments from other people, which have caused offence, and made statements in a way which does not represent my views then or now.
“Ideletedthisblogsometime ago precisely because I accepted that it contained unacceptable content, but I recognise that these posts should never have been published in the first place.
“That is entirely my responsibility and I am deeply sorry.”
At Holyrood, Ms Sturgeon said it was “with regret” that she would not be asking parliament to approve Ms Martin’s appointment, adding she would take time to reflect on the blog’s contents.
Ms Sturgeon said: “I have to say that this content, however ill-advised it may be, does not reflect the views of the person I know in Gillian Martin.”
One definition of the word racism is “the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics, abilities, or qualities specific to that race”.
So when someone uncritically reports, as Gillian Martin MSP did, that “American Christian Whites – tip well”, “American blacks – don’t tip at all or tip next to nothing” and “American Jews – tip ok, but only if you’ve absolutely busted your hump”, they could be accused, by that definition, of spreading racism. Martin very nearly became a member of the Scottish Government, until her deleted 2007 blog post came to light and Nicola Sturgeon decided not to put her forward as minister for further education, higher education and science. Martin also made derogatory remarks about transgender people, which were known about but apparently not considered an obstacle to high office. The vetting of those elevated to such positions of democratic authority is a serious business. If these comments were missed, what else has been? The affair also raises questions about the vetting process that allowed her to become an MSP and whether she can remain one.