Бывший депутат SNP, осужденный за сексуальные домогательства, присутствовал на заседании парламента Шотландии

Anger as SNP sex pest visits Scottish Parliament to attend Holyrood committee EXCLUSIVE: The shamed former MP attended a meeting of the Europe, External Affairs and International Development committee. A former SNP MP who sexually harassed a teenager has been spotted at a Holyrood committee meeting. Shamed Patrick Grady, who breached Westminster’s sexual misconduct rules, sat at the back of a session on international development on Tuesday morning. This was in spite of his victim having a job at Holyrood. Scottish Labour acting leader Jackie Baillie said: "Just months after he was spotted wearing an SNP lanyard at the election count in Glasgow, Patrick Grady is now sitting behind SNP ministers at the Scottish Parliament." "The SNP must say what connection they retain with Grady, and whether they think it is appropriate a sex pest is able to have such close access to ministers." Grady quit as SNP chief whip in 2021 after claims he groped a 19 year old staffer in a London bar five years earlier. An independent panel ruled that Grady made an “unwanted sexual advance” by stroking the man’s neck, hair and back. They ruled he had breached sexual misconduct rules and he was suspended from Westminster for two days. He did not stand at the 2024 general election and is now head of policy and communications at Scotland’s International Development Alliance. At a meeting of Holyrood’s Europe, External Affairs and International Development committee, Grady was seen in the public gallery with a notepad. He was present when his former MP colleague and now SNP Government Minister Stephen Gethins was giving evidence. After the session, Grady refused all questions from the Record. He stood motionless at the lift and was silent when asked if he is an appropriate person to be in the parliament. The communications officer said nothing when asked if he could not have just watched the session on TV. Asked if he was meeting Grady, Gethins said: "No, I've got a meeting with [an] offshore wind conference now." Baillie said: "The SNP have repeatedly refused to clarify whether Grady has any role with the party. They must now do so. "This is a man who sexually harassed a young member of party staff and was subsequently suspended from the Commons."To add insult to injury, the person who handled complaints in this case - and who attempted to shut down the victim - Kirsten Oswald, was appointed as the Minister for Victims." In an apology delivered in the Commons in 2022, Grady said: "I am profoundly sorry for my behaviour and I deeply regret my actions and their consequences.” Grady added that “such behaviour on my part will never happen again" and said he had undergone "bespoke and generic training" to improve his conduct since the incident. In 2022, Grady’s victim criticised the SNP’s treatment of him after he came forward: “The reaction of others in the SNP was not to support me but to start a rumour campaign that I was making it all up. “This happened despite the public nature of the sexual harassment which many officials and staff would have seen."