Lawyers representing Murdo Fraser MSP have lodged an official complaint against Police Scotland over a Non-Crime Hate Incident (NCHI).
This follows a social media post from Mr Fraser, in which he compared non-binary people with those who “identify as a cat,” was recorded as a hate incident. Lawyers acting for the Scottish Conservative politician have written to the Police Investigation and Review Commissioner (PIRC) demanding an investigation into Police Scotland’s decision to record a NCHI against him.
The legal team argue that this decision breached Mr Fraser’s right to freedom of expression. They state Police Scotland cannot explain why he had been targeted, when no NCHIs were recorded against former First Minister Humza Yousaf and JK Rowling for other controversial statements. Police Scotland received complaints about a speech by Mr Yousaf in a 2020 Holyrood debate challenging racism.
Mr Yousaf had said that “99 per cent of the time” he was “the only non-white person” in the room during Scottish Government meetings. And the lawyers have also cited the example of Ms Rowling posting pictures of 10 high-profile transgender people in April, when the hate crime law came into force, in which the author ridiculed their claims to be women. She then challenged police to arrest her.
Commenting, Mr Fraser said: “It must be a real concern that police forces across the United Kingdom have been operating a policy of recording NCHIs, which may well be unlawful and is in breach of human rights. I tried to get Police Scotland to withdraw the NCHI but it refused, saying it had adopted a ‘victim-centred approach.’
“I am grateful for the support of the Free Speech Union in allowing me to take legal advice to challenge the actions of Police Scotland. The police approach to recording NCHIs can have a chilling impact on free speech and that is why it must be changed.”
Mr Fraser was reported by a member of the public in November last year after he shared a post on social media about the Scottish Government’s transgender policies. He said that “choosing to identify as ‘non-binary’ is as valid as choosing to identify as a cat.” Police Scotland judged that the post was not a crime but still logged it as an NCHI, without telling Mr Fraser.
As a result, Mr Fraser’s lawyers last week wrote to PIRC, stating that Police Scotland had rejected his complaint “without foundation.”
