An SNP MP and Business Secretary Grant Shapps clashed in the House of Commons over tax incentives for the fossil fuel industry in the UK.
10.11.2022 - 02:37 / dailyrecord.co.uk
An Ayrshire MP is one of the most targeted Scottish politicians when it comes to online abuse.
Kilmarnock and Loudoun’s SNP representative, Alan Brown MP, received 11 tweets identified as ‘toxic’ in a new report on online abuse of Westminster politicians.
Mr Brown was mentioned in 425 times on Twitter over a period of six weeks. A total of 11 were deemed to be ‘toxic’ in a survey put together by the BBC data journalism team.
A toxic tweet was defined as “rude, disrespectful or unreasonable comment that is likely to make someone leave a conversation”.
Mr Brown said: “Clearly 'toxic' tweets should be condemned.
“Abuse on social media can be horrific for some people and adversely affect their mental health.
“Firmer action is required on abusive tweets; false information as well as racism and misogyny.
“Worse, Elon Musk with his takeover of Twitter wants to encourage ‘free speech’. We already saw groups previously banned from Twitter re-joining such as the racist “Britain First”.
"On a personal basis I try to ignore abusive tweets and block or mute people as a see fit. In some cases reporting such tweets may be required.
Both Mr Brown and Central Ayrshire MP Dr Philippa Whitford were also mentioned in one ‘severely toxic’ tweet apiece.
Dr Whitford said: “While I certainly receive some rude responses on social media, I do not receive a great deal of personal abuse online but a number of my MP colleagues receive aggressive tweets on a regular basis and there’s no doubt it is a growing problem, both in terms of frequency and in viciousness.
“Freedom of speech is vital for a healthy democracy, as is being able to engage with your elected representatives, but being able to hide behind a keyboard and comment anonymously has seen us drift
An SNP MP and Business Secretary Grant Shapps clashed in the House of Commons over tax incentives for the fossil fuel industry in the UK.
The Scottish Government should ban the use of zero hour contracts in health and social care jobs if it wants to solve a recruitment crisis, campaigners have claimed.
Alister Jack has admitted a second referendum on independence could happen in the future but insisted it was not what most Scots voters wanted at the present time.
A former SNP minister has branded the Scottish Government’s independence proposals “crap” as he called for a new approach for obtaining a referendum.
The UK Government is "scared" of allowing a second Scottish independence referendum because it knows it will lose, the SNP's depute leader has claimed.
The 10 most picturesque winter travel destinations in Scotland have been revealed in a new study.
A new opinion poll has found that half of Scots would vote SNP in the next general election if a victory for the party could lead to Scottish independence.
Edinburgh's Christmas markets have been revealed as the most popular in Europe according to a new TikTok study.
The car brands that are most and least likely to pass their MOT tests have been revealed in new data.
A Premier Inn employee has detailed one of the lesser-known parts of his job in the hotel industry.
Conservative media firm The Daily Wire has optioned exclusive film and TV series rights to develop and produce an adaptation of Arthurian legend novels The Pendragon Cycle.
Armed Forces personnel deserve better pay and pensions to help them and their families through the cost of living crisis, a report by the SNP's defence spokesman has found.
The SNP government has been slammed for "ploughing ahead" with P1 testing despite concerns about the policy from a senior figure in the party and opposition MSPs.
Scotland's former Health Secretary has accused some Tories of trying to "make a buck" around PPE contracts during the coronavirus pandemic.
The education secretary has hinted a teacher strike could be prevented later this month if "additional funding" is found by the Scottish Government.
With skyrocketing energy bills, many households will want to know how much their appliances are costing them over the course of a year.
The most "beautiful" baby name choices for this year have been revealed, with Zayn and Sophia taking the top spots. New research carried out by parenting gift site My1stYear has shown which popular baby names are the most beautiful, according to the theory of linguistics.
Rishi Sunak has again refused to commit to raising benefits and the state pension in line with inflation.
An SNP MSP who quit the Scottish Government over its gender recognition Bill has claimed Nicola Sturgeon was "well aware" of her concerns.