SNP poll candidate is attacked for 'playing down' sectarianism

Published on Friday 17 July 2009 22:18

THE SNP candidate for the Glasgow North East by-election has been accused of holding "dangerous views" on sectarianism.

David Kerr, who was confirmed as the Nationalist candidate last night, came under fire for comments he made previously about former BBC colleagues four years ago.

The concerns centre on his claims in a letter to BBC in-house magazine Ariel, that Scotland did not have a sectarian problem outside "a few antisocial young football fans with a penchant for Irish political rhetoric".

Labour have alleged that his selection is "symbolic" of what they believe is the SNP's attempt to cut back on dealing with sectarianism – dubbed "Scotland's shame" – and downplay it as a problem.

Former Labour first minister Jack McConnell has publicly attacked his Nationalist successor, Alex Salmond, for canceling regular summits on the issue.

Mr Kerr's comments came in protest at a BBC Panorama programme about sectarianism, entitled Scotland's Secret Shame. The documentary, made in 2005, accused Rangers and Celtic of failing to do enough to stamp out bigotry and hatred among the Catholic and Protestant communities.

It also suggested that Scotland was blas about the issue.

Labour's business manager in Holyrood, Michael McMahon – like Mr Kerr, a prominent Catholic in Scotland's political sphere – said the views were particularly bad for somebody who wanted to represent a seat in Glasgow, where the problem was at its worst.

He said: "Sectarianism has killed people in Scotland and it should not be dismissed so lightly by Mr Kerr.

"Mr Kerr's views are dangerous. To pretend that sectarianism is not a problem in Scotland defies belief. This is all part of the Nationalists' attempts to pretend that divisions do not exist and try to deal with them. We can see that in the way they ended the summits."

However, the SNP said the churches agreed with the cancellation of the summits and that anti-sectarian programmes remain fully funded.

In a statement, Mr Kerr said: "Scots are well known as a very tolerant and inclusive people, and Scottish society as a whole is obviously not sectarian. To say otherwise does many people across the country a disservice.

"However, where sectarian problems exist, they are being tackled at source through a range of initiatives involving government and voluntary organisations.

"Indeed, I understand that the Scottish Government is publishing an anti-sectarian strategy in the autumn."

Mr Kerr will fight Labour's Willie Bain for the seat vacated by former Commons speaker Michael Martin. He has come under fire for being the constituency party's fourth-choice candidate, after he was originally rejected last week.