Former SNP MP Joanna Cherry has hit back at Nicola Sturgeon, telling the ex Scottish first minister she is "not obsessed" with her and is open about her sexuality.
Ms Cherry said the former SNP leader, who is now living in London, "flirts and teases us with the idea that she might be a lesbian".
Sturgeon's comments at the Fringe
Appearing at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this weekend, the former first minister had described Ms Cherry's book on her experiences in the SNP as "shit".
Asked if she had read it, Ms Sturgeon told host Iain Dale "f*** off" as she accused the one-time MP, who is now back working as a lawyer, of having an "obsession" with her.
Cherry's response
Ms Cherry KC, who was appearing at the Fringe with Mr Dale on Monday, said: "Don't worry Nicola, I'm not obsessed by you. Unlike you, I have a very happy and meaningful career to fall back on."
"And also, perhaps in contrast to her, I have a very strong and happy relationship with my girlfriend, and I am open about my sexuality, and have been for a very long time."
Sturgeon's memoir and self-ID policy
In her memoir Frankly, published last year, Ms Sturgeon said she had never considered her sexuality to be binary. Ms Cherry said the former first minister "flirts with the subject" and "goes on gay pride marches".
But the former MP said the policy of self ID for trans people, which was pursued by Ms Sturgeon when she was in power, had impacted on the gay and lesbian community.
She went on to tell an audience at the EICC: "As she flirts and teases us with the idea that she might be a lesbian, what I would say to her is you need to think about what you owe the generations of lesbians and gay men who fought so it was acceptable in this country, Scotland and the United Kingdom, to be gay and to have equal rights. To realise our protections under the Equalities Act are just as important as those of trans people."
Cherry's call for analysis
Speaking about Ms Sturgeon, the former MP, who has now left the SNP, continued: "I would like to reassure her I have no interest in her, beyond thinking it's very important for Scotland and my former political party and the independence movement to analyse what has gone wrong over the last 10 years, to look carefully at the various scandals that have happened, and to address them so we can all move on.
"I think it would be interesting if Nicola was ever prepared to address the detail of the criticisms I have made of her, rather than attacking me."
