A former SNP councillor who suffered threats and abuse over a tweet made during last year’s Eurovision Song Contest has been cleared of breaching the Councillors Code of Conduct.
Rhiannon Spear, who stood down as a councillor this month because of the “toxic atmosphere in politics”, was cleared by the Standards Commission for Scotland after being reported for tweeting: “It’s ok Europe, we hate the United Kingdom too. Love Scotland. (Scottish flag emoji) #Eurovision” (heart emoji).” during the 2021 Eurovision Song Contest.
The tweet was created after the UK scored “nil” points in the competition but sparked an angry backlash, with Labour and Conservative councillors among those to criticise her. Conservative councillor Thomas Kerr said it showed the “true face of nationalism [is] just as vile as any other”.
