Nicola Sturgeon has piled further pressure on her party’s Westminster leader over his handling of the scandal of sex pest MP Patrick Grady.
She said Ian Blackford and his colleagues had questions to answer about the case and admitted the victim had not been supported.
Blackford is fighting to keep his job over his response to a sexual misconduct allegation being upheld against Grady, the MP for Glasgow North, by Westminster authorities.
READ MORE: SNP staff member called sex pest Patrick Grady's victim 'fantasist' with drink problem during probe
Grady made unwanted sexual advances in 2016 to a staffer who was 19, in a London bar, but he only received a two day suspension from the SNP group.
A leaked recording from a meeting of SNP MPs showed Blackford urging colleagues to give their “absolute” support for Grady, while saying nothing about the victim.
He was also at the centre of a botched attempt to resolve the Grady issue informally at a meeting in his room in 2018, an approach described by the victim as an ambush.
In addition, Blackford allowed Grady to remain as SNP chief whip while his victim continued to work for the party at Westminster.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is backing Blackford, but she added to the pressure on him this week by describing his recorded comments as “utterly unacceptable”.
Speaking to the BBC today, she aimed fresh criticism in Blackford’s direction: "I know Ian Blackford feels deep regret that the victim in this case feels unsupported.
"And let me be very clear - a victim who feels unsupported by definition was unsupported, because making sure a victim feels supported is a crucial part of any process and I take seriously".
She added: "I have confidence in Ian Blackford, but that is not saying that I don't think there are questions here to be addressed and answered by the SNP, including by our Westminster group. I absolutely think that is the case.
"What I think about what happened is not unimportant - I'm the leader of the SNP.
"But what is most important is what the victim and the complainer in this case thinks happened, and whether that was appropriate or not."
In an interview with the Record last week, the victim said the SNP’s treatment of him after he made the complaint was worse than Grady’s harassment.
Blackford said yesterday: "Of course I apologise for how the complainant feels in this process and I am offering to sit down and meet with the complainant so I can listen to them and draw any lessons that need to be learned."
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