North Lanarkshire Council Moves to Sever Ties with Youth Organisation Linked to Linden Crimes
Former colleagues of disgraced SNP sex offender Jordan Linden have proposed cutting all connections with the youth organisation associated with some of his criminal activities. North Lanarkshire councillors will also demand the immediate resignation of SNP Holyrood candidate Tracy Carragher and fellow party member Fiona Fotheringham after both women testified in Linden's defence during his recent trial.
Two Urgent Motions Put Forward Following Conviction
Two separate motions have been submitted for consideration at Thursday's full council meeting, coming just one week after Linden's conviction for ten sexual offences at Falkirk Sheriff Court. The 30-year-old former council leader was found to have systematically harassed and abused eight men and boys over a decade-long period while serving as chairman of the Scottish Youth Parliament and as an SNP councillor for Bellshill.
One of Linden's accusers, fellow councillor Cameron McManus, has formally proposed that the two SNP local authority politicians who defended him in court should be removed immediately from their positions. This development significantly increases pressure on the SNP to explain why the party took no substantive action when multiple members complained about Linden's predatory behaviour dating back to 2017.
Reputational Damage and Calls for Accountability
The motion, which has received support from Labour councillor Louise Roarty, explicitly states there has been significant reputational damage caused by the criminal convictions of former Council Leader Jordan Linden. It further declares that the authority calls for the immediate resignation of Councillors Carragher and Fotheringham, who are alleged to have repeatedly ignored or downplayed concerns about Linden's conduct over an extended period.
As a direct consequence, the motion specifies that Councillor Carragher's current Special Responsibility Allowance should be suspended with immediate effect. Carragher, who appears on the SNP's regional list for Holyrood, serves as the party's group leader in North Lanarkshire and receives approximately £10,000 annually in addition to her standard councillor salary for this role. Several of her colleagues believe this additional compensation should be revoked.
Second Motion Targets Scottish Youth Parliament Relationship
A second urgent motion, proposed by council leader Jim Logue, states: The Council agrees to immediately suspend all current activity between North Lanarkshire Council and the Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP) and directs the Chief Executive to conduct an immediate review of North Lanarkshire Council's relationship, past and present, with the SYP.
This motion has been supported by former SNP councillor Paul Di Mascio, who left the party after publicly supporting Mr McManus regarding Linden's behaviour. The Scottish Youth Parliament previously claimed that its child protection policies fully complied with national guidelines, despite staff failing to report Linden's conduct to police or social services when several young men contacted bosses about receiving sexual messages from the predator.
Instead of involving proper authorities, the organisation hired a private law firm to investigate the victims. In response to the controversy, Ms Carragher stated she welcomed Linden's conviction and clarified: I was called as a witness in Jordan Linden's trial, and so I gave an honest account of my involvement and my knowledge of events. I did not at any point defend Mr Linden.
