Exclusive:Tommy Sheridan pursuing legal action against Glasgow City Council over social work job snub

The former Scottish Socialist Party leader has lodged a petition for judicial review

Tommy Sheridan is pursuing legal action against Glasgow City Council after he failed to secure a job as a social worker.

The former Scottish Socialist Party leader, who was jailed for committing perjury in 2011, has lodged a petition for judicial review.

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This seeks to challenge the “decision to permanently exclude [Mr Sheridan] from being employed as a social worker in Glasgow”.

The ex-MSP posted online last summer about graduating from Glasgow Caledonian University following a two-year master’s degree in social work.

Tommy Sheridan, pictured at a rally in 2013Tommy Sheridan, pictured at a rally in 2013
Tommy Sheridan, pictured at a rally in 2013 | PA

The Scotsman understands Mr Sheridan has applied for social work roles with the council but has been unsuccessful.

His petition is understood to allege that he was told this was due to his perjury conviction and, as such, the council was effectively saying it would refuse to consider any and all future applications.

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However, it is understood Glasgow City Council contests this.

A council spokesman said: “We have responded to Mr Sheridan’s petition and are waiting to hear if it will be accepted by the court. It would be inappropriate to comment further at this point.”

The Court of Session said a judge will now determine whether the case may proceed, and no hearing has been set.

Mr Sheridan is listed as being represented by the law firm Drummond Miller, but it said the Govan Law Centre is instructed as principal agent. The council is being represented by Harper Macleod LLP.

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Mr Sheridan was an MSP for the Glasgow region from 1999 to 2007, and was seen as a socialist firebrand in Holyrood.

However, he was later sentenced to three years in jail for lying in court during a civil action against the News of the World.

Mr Sheridan had previously been successful in defamation action against the newspaper in 2006, winning £200,000 after it reported he was an adulterer who visited swingers’ clubs.

But after a three-month trial at the High Court in Glasgow, he was found guilty of lying about the newspaper’s claims and sent to prison for perjury.

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The former MSP appealed against his conviction in March 2015, and again in June 2016, with both applications being refused.

Mr Sheridan then appealed to the Supreme Court, which ruled the appeal did not raise an arguable point of law, and therefore it would not be granted permission to be heard.

He co-founded a new political party, Solidarity, in 2006. This was dissolved in 2021. However, Mr Sheridan has remained active in campaigning for Scottish independence.

The 60-year-old was among the attendees at former first minister Alex Salmond’s memorial service at St Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh last year.

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Mr Sheridan previously secured a law degree from Strathclyde University in 2015.

Last summer, in response to a social media user who suggested he should stand again as an MSP at the next Holyrood election, he posted: "I just graduated as a professional social worker from Glasgow Caledonian University after a two-year masters degree so I am applying for jobs in that profession just now but who knows what will come to pass by 2026."

Mr Sheridan and the Govan Law Centre were contacted for comment.

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