An English-born Perthshire MP has hit out at “divisive language at the heart of the SNP” after a councillor said he would “send him homeward”.
Luke Graham MP was speaking after the release of a video from Graham Lindsay, a Clackmannanshire councillor who wants to stand in the Ochil and South Perthshire seat at the next general election.
In the video, Cllr Lindsay said “I believe I am the right person to expose Luke and his harmful policies and send him homeward.”
Mr Graham later revealed in a national newspaper that he and his staff are regularly targeted with abuse and told to “go back to England”.
We also reported in March that two men had threatened to lynch one of Mr Graham’s staff at his office in Crieff.
He said this week: “Facing divisive rhetoric is all too frequent from nationalists, as we saw a few months ago when my staff member was threatened with being hanged while finishing her work one evening in my office. To have an elected SNP councillor in Clackmannanshire use the phrase ‘send him homeward’ in a promotional video for selection is weak, against our values as a liberal democracy and not befitting the potential MP for Ochil and South Perthshire. Last week we heard from parliamentarians about how words matter and how society can be impacted by the words politicians use, creating division and promoting prejudices.
“The mask has slipped – this is the kind of negative, divisive language at the heart of the SNP.
“If Cllr Lindsay wants me to go home, he can pay for my taxi to Auchterarder. It will be a cheap trip.”
Cllr Lindsay defended his comments, saying he was referring to Perth, despite Mr Graham not living in the city.
He wrote on Twitter: “Classic Tory tactics-accuse others of being divisive when it’s Tory policy to make our European citizens so unwelcome. Scotland’s borders will always be open to everyone.
“Luke’s hometown is Perth. “Homeward” ... to Perth.
“This is a little silly, I think someone’s a wee bit #Feart”.
