AN Alba party event featuring leader Alex Salmond has been cancelled by the venue, sparking a row between the party and the Greens.
The Wee Alba Book roadshow was due to visit the Record Factory, a music bar in Glasgow’s west end, on Saturday.
But after Greens councillor Blair Anderson highlighted the issue, the show was cancelled by the bar – whose owner insists they were unaware the event was political in nature.
Co-owner Paul McJimpsey, stressed it would have been “the same” had it been any other political party.
“I have zero interest in politics,” he said.
Anderson (below), who represents the area on Glasgow City Council, expressed concern over the impact of the event on constituents.
Alba general secretary Chris McEleny said they are seeking legal advice around his online comments.
McJimpsey told The National: “We had an email on Friday that a junior member of staff picked up on and it just said: ‘We are looking for a space to do a book launch on Saturday [July 9] between 12 and 4pm and the book is called Wee Alba’.
“There was no mention it was political. Late on the Friday, I found out it was a political thing – this is where the confusion lies.
“Whether it was Green party, Labour; I have zero interest in politics.
“We just don’t do anything political, it makes no sense whatsoever.
“We’re a late-night dive bar.”
The booking was cancelled within 17 hours of the email being received, he added.
Anderson had criticised the bar for taking the booking and had promised to write to its owners to express his “disappointment” over the move.
He insisted he respected the party’s “right to free speech” but said he had the right to say he “disapproved”.
McEleny, who is now in charge of the day-to-day running of the party led by Salmond, said: “I was a councillor for 10 years, so the Greens councillor’s behaviour seems quite deplorable to me.
“His job is to represent his entire community not just people or political parties he agrees with.
“As a councillor he should know better than to block organisations having events based on unfounded and defamatory accusations.”
Alba has drawn accusations of transphobia because of its opposition to the Scottish Government’s plans to relax the law around gender recognition certificates for trans people.
The party has called for a stop to the plans which it claims presents a threat to the security of women-only spaces protected in law, such as women’s shelters.
Opponents say existing equality legislation means trans people are already allowed in women-only spaces and have compared arguments against gender reform to scaremongering campaigns against gay men in the 1980s.
The Wee Alba Book roadshow is currently touring Scotland and its upcoming Glasgow date has found the new venue of the Grosvenor Hotel.
