Former Scottish Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes has claimed she was advised to lie about her views on same-sex marriage during the Scottish National Party's (SNP) leadership contest in 2023. Forbes, who stepped down as a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) in May, made the assertion at a conference organized by the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship (ARC).
Forbes stated that she believed she was in a leading position to become the SNP leader until she openly expressed her views on the matter. During the campaign, she acknowledged that she would have voted against same-sex marriage legislation if she had been an MSP at the time it was passed, though she maintained she would not seek to overturn the existing law.
Forbes, a member of the Free Church of Scotland, also faced criticism for earlier statements regarding her views on marriage, children born outside of marriage, abortion, and transgender rights. Speaking at the London conference, she said, "All these wonderfully committed team members, who wanted me to win, had great advice – just lie and you’ll be fine." She added that she was thankful she had not "crumbled" when faced with questions, and that voters respected her honesty despite a "fervent backlash" to her views on sex and gender.
Senior figures within the SNP have rejected Forbes' claim that she was advised to lie. One former SNP politician told The Daily Mail that no one would have advised her to misrepresent her well-known religious views. This individual also disputed Forbes' assertion that she was leading the race, noting that no polling of SNP membership had been conducted prior to the debates. While acknowledging that Forbes was advised to be cautious in discussing her socially conservative religious beliefs during televised debates, the source insisted that no one suggested she should lie.
The former SNP politician suggested that while Forbes' religious views may have alienated some individuals, they were unlikely to have changed many minds. They also commented that Humza Yousaf's religious views may have received more leniency during the debates. Yousaf, who ultimately won the leadership contest, was himself questioned during the campaign regarding his absence from the final vote on Scotland's equal marriage legislation in 2014. At the time, he denied claims that he missed the vote due to "religious pressure," stating he supported equal marriage then and now.
Forbes served as Scotland's first female Finance Secretary in 2020. After losing the leadership bid, she returned to the backbenches before being appointed Deputy First Minister under John Swinney. She subsequently resigned as an MSP in May to focus on her family.