The Scottish National Party (SNP) is facing criticism after withdrawing permission for the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) to host a fringe event on coerced abortion at its party conference.
The proposed event would have discussed legal protections for women facing pressure to terminate a pregnancy. However, following concerns raised by SNP members, the party withdrew its approval.
In a statement to The Student, an SNP spokesperson said: “Following concerns being raised by SNP members, we have taken the decision to revoke permission for SPUC to hold a fringe event at our conference.”
The spokesperson added: “We want the SNP conference to be a place where all members can feel comfortable and it is clear that our initial decision was wrong as it did not achieve that.”
SPUC has challenged the decision and is seeking legal advice over a potential breach of the Equality Act 2010.
When asked for a comment, Chris McEleny, SPUC’s Scottish parliamentary officer, questioned why a proposed panel of women had been cancelled and called on First Minister John Swinney to clarify his position on legal protections against coerced abortion.
“True leadership demands the courage not just to defeat an argument, but to listen to it with absolute clarity,” McEleny told The Student.
He went on to accuse the SNP of suppressing debate: “Preventing debate and discussion and cancelling valid viewpoints are behaviours associated with totalitarian regimes around the world, the rule of the mob has replaced the rule of law within the SNP.”
The SNP’s decision has drawn criticism from SPUC and prompted questions over the legal limits of political parties’ control over conference events. Whether the cancellation will lead to legal proceedings remains to be seen.
Image by Ulia Makoveeva for The Student.
