THE former co-leader of the Scottish Greens has called for an “upwelling” of party members to remove the current leadership.
Robin Harper, the Scottish Greens' first-ever MSP, hit out as he launched something called the “Scottish Green women’s declaration for sex-based rights” – despite no longer having any affiliation to the party.
A spokesperson for the Greens dismissed Harper's declaration, saying: “No such group is known to nor affiliated to the Scottish Greens.
“We support the rights of our trans siblings and stand against all forms of prejudice.”
Harper quit the party earlier in 2023 in a disagreement with its stance on trans rights, accusing the party, under current leaders Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater, of having “lost the plot”.
In a leaked internal message reported by The National, Harvie hit out at Harper. “I think it's fair to say that most serious political observers will recognise that Robin's position has very little credibility," the Green minister wrote.
The Scottish Greens have been steadfast in their support for the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill – legislation which would make it easier for transgender people to obtain a gender recognition certificate.
The bill was blocked by the UK Government in January after being passed by Holyrood, with the Court of Session currently considering an appeal.
In an interview with Holyrood magazine, the party’s first-ever MSP said there was a “ruling cabal” in the Scottish Greens.
“About half of the MSPs form it. They don’t listen – they don’t want to listen – to reason, to the rest of the party, where there are differences of opinion.”
He added: “There needs to be an upwelling amongst members to replace the present leadership.”
Scottish Green members had an opportunity to replace Slater and Harvie (above) in internal party elections in July.
However, no one stood against them in what the Greens described as "a ringing endorsement of their work as ministers and in leading their party to record polling numbers".
Harper's “Scottish Green women’s declaration for sex-based rights” says sex is a “biological reality” and should not be “confused with gender”.
It adds that “women and girls are subject to discrimination and oppression on the basis of their sex,” as well as advocating for the protection of single-sex spaces in law and stressing that women and girls “have the right to discuss policies which affect them without being abused, harassed or intimidated”.
The declaration also says: “We know that globally, women, as a sex, are disproportionately affected by climate change and environmental degradation and that their empowerment is essential to our work as environmentalists.”
