THE Scottish Youth Parliament is to investigate how it gave a clean bill of health to a senior SNP member who was later embroiled in a sexual misconduct scandal.
The charity’s chief executive Ben McKendrick, who is accused of failing to protect SYP members, is being urged to stand aside while his actions are under the microscope.
Jordan Linden temporarily stepped aside as an SNP councillor for Bellshill in 2017 after allegations about his conduct at the SYP a year before were referred to the police.
After taking advice from child protection experts and consulting lawyers, the SYP had already concluded the claims were false and there was “no case to answer”.
Mr Linden, SYP chair from 2015 to 2016, claimed he was the victim of smears and hoped the police would take action “against those who are spreading lies against me”.
After looking into complaints around the sending of explicit photographs and harassment, police ruled in 2018 that no criminality had been “established”.
Mr Linden returned to work as a councillor claiming to have been vindicated. But the next year he sexually harassed a young man at a house party in Dundee.
SNP HQ was made aware of the situation, but did not fully investigate as no formal complaint was made, and Mr Linden was allowed to remain in the party.
In May, he became the £45,000-a-year leader of North Lanarkshire.
Within weeks, the Sunday Mail reported the 2019 claim and he stepped down admitting he had been at fault, and the SNP lost control of the council to Labour.
Tory MSP Meghan Gallacher said it was “worrying” the SYP did not report complaints about Mr Linden to the police when they first aroseand said its upper age limit should be lowered from 25 to 18 to minimise the risk of bullying, grooming and sexual misconduct.
The Sunday Mail reported today that charity regulators were looking into the SYP, which spent up to £30,000 on lawyers around the Linden affair in 2016.
Ms Gallacher said: “Those who have bravely come forward to detail their complaints need confidence in the investigation as it progresses. That will only be hindered the longer Ben McKendrick remains in his current roles of responsibility.”
The SYP said: “A review of processes followed in 2016 is being conducted by independent, external advisers and the SYP chair. The review will not involve the chief executive, other than potentially providing evidence of the processes followed at the time.”
The Scottish Government said it took the issue of harassment very seriously and was keeping the situation at the SYP “under review”.
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