by Fred Byrne & Oliver Kennedy.
A lively hustings saw debate on Aberdeen’s pertinent issues, a debut for up-and-coming SNP favourite, and, curiously, an unknown Reform panelist from California.
Politicians debated in the city’s first hustings to feature all six major parties contesting seats in Scottish Parliament. The Gaudie, supported by Politics & International Relations (PIR) society, opened election season in the historic King’s College Conference Centre on campus in Old Aberdeen, where students and members of the public attended to hear the views of the Conservatives, Greens, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Reform UK and Scottish National Party (SNP).
We break down key moments from the night:
Young SNP insider pushes party talking points in his first debate as candidate
Jack Middleton, proudly the youngest politician on the panel, used his opening speech to highlight his status as an anti-unionist candidate. The special adviser to First Minister John Swinney argued that Scottish independence under the Scottish National Party (SNP) will give Aberdeen a fresh start.
Despite his party holding power in Holyrood, Middleton spoke the language of renewal, passionately asserting that he would deliver for Aberdonians who have been left behind.
He resolutely called for the removal of a windfall tax on oil and gas profits, which he blames for thousands of job losses. He also defended free university tuition, which allowed him to study politics at Stirling University. On whether universities over-rely on international students for revenue, Middleton said the Scottish Government’s most recent budget allocated £1.5 billion on higher education student support.
The Gaudie chairs Elle Brown and Emily Reid allowed panelists to answer questions as and when they wanted, and so Jack Middleton held his tongue on an audience question on whether or not he supports a recent UK Supreme Court ruling defining gender as sex. Post-hustings, he said chairs “did the right thing” to temper comments “in danger of making transgender people feel unsafe”.
Middleton faced several attacks from other panelists, with Labour candidate Jenny Laing criticising him for his lack of an answer on protecting St Fittick’s Park, a green space turned energy transition zone which has been harshly criticised by local campaigners.
The Aberdeen Central candidate was seen proactively pouring water for other candidates and initiating handshakes with them. He reflected that he handled the “heated” debate well despite it being his first such event.
Mystery Reform non-candidate says “I was a cash cow” at St Andrews University
Reform UK switched their panel member at the last minute after their Scotland conference, with Joanna Hart stepping aside for Dr Jordan Brown, a California-born academic. Speaking with The Gaudie after the debate, Brown ruled out the possibility of standing as a candidate for the Holyrood elections this May, despite The Press and Journal reporting that he would stand in Aberdeen Central.
Brown told us he arrived to study a history PhD at St Andrews University because his grandfather was Scottish, and to satisfy his “British itch”. He moved to Aberdeen nine years ago, where he works for himself as a private consultant in politics and academia.
He said, “I don’t want to be a politician, I mean, I never wanted to”, adding that he is “still working with Reform” this election, and that after reading the Scottish Reform manifesto during the 10 minute break “there was nothing [he] disagreed with”.
The candidate garnered support when he criticised Scottish universities for treating international students like “cash cows” and for “outrageous pay” to senior management. He said the University of Aberdeen is not the hub it should be because it is “so reliant on doing cash cow degrees”.
Greens candidate Maggie Chapman quipped that although it is likely the only topic where she’ll agree with a Reform politician, she too was a “cash cow”. Arriving as a student from Zimbabwe to Scotland, she said progressive income tax is needed to fund public services, while Brown said he doesn’t support higher taxation to fund universities.
During the event, Brown was confronted by a member of the audience regarding Reform’s policy to cut seats in Scottish Parliament.
Reform panelist agitates charismatic Liberal Democrat with offshore job safety claim
The American Reformer drew laughs when he said that wind energy jobs are statistically more dangerous than oil and gas jobs.
Liberal Democrat candidate Michel Turvey, who has worked for Shell, vehemently opposed Brown’s statement by introducing an emotional anecdote referring to the Piper Alpha disaster which saw 167 workers die in a fire on an offshore rig off Aberdeen’s coast. Met by a large applause from the audience, Turvey encouraged Brown to visit the Piper Alpha memorial in Hazelhead park, which was answered with an eye-roll from the Reform panelist.
Turvey remained composed throughout the evening, often making jokes with audience members and the debate chairs.
SNP and Labour trade blame for Scotland’s problems
Jenny Laing attacked the SNP for 19 years of power in Holyrood, under which she claimed that Scotland has lost out on £6 billion a year as its economy underperforms compared with the UK.
Middleton retorted, claiming that Labour are “completely failing” to get a grip of the economy, with energy bills increasing by £300 over summer under their Westminster leadership. He keenly pointed out that Laing’s boss is PM Keir Starmer.
Both Laing and Middleton faced the awkward positions of answering for policies they were not personally responsible for, but representing a party which is. Labour controls Westminster, which holds reserved powers on issues like immigration and defense, while Holyrood holds devolved powers on issues including education and healthcare.
Laing often brought up her experience in Aberdeen City Council as evidence of her expertise on various political questions.
Conservative candidate draws on experience as secondary school teacher
Stewart Whyte, representing the Conservative and Unionist Party, was mild throughout the evening, except for a few moments like interrupting an opening speech and shouting “rubbish” when Middleton said non-SNP parties talk Aberdeen down.
Whyte spoke of his experience teaching secondary school pupils, adding that on the topic of youth antisocial behaviour, we should be careful not to demonise young people. He also addressed the difficulties for Scottish pupils to access universities.
Whyte made energy his number one issue, saying Aberdeen needs to not only remove the windfall tax on oil and gas profits, but to keep drilling oil and gas “to make the most out of it”. The candidate was endorsed by Aberdeen University’s Conservative and Unionist Association who attended as a group.
Maggie Chapman wins largest applause for trans rights statement
The Greens’ regional candidate Chapman drew cheers and hollers in response to a question on the UK Supreme Court ruling on gender. “My trans women siblings and friends are women,” she asserted. “When we stand together, we can tackle male violence which is a scourge on our society”.
Her other stand-out moments included saying that illicit drug use should be legalised and regulated to support addicts as a healthcare issue rather than a criminal issue, prompting Middleton to agree that the war on drugs has failed. Chapman also said she stands with communities opposing use of St Fittick’s Park in Torry as an energy transition zone, and called for an acceleration towards renewables to combat the climate crisis.
A big moment for The Gaudie student newspaper
Chapman asked the crowd to join her in appreciating the efforts of The Gaudie, which was met with applause to conclude the evening.
The event was organised entirely by students at University of Aberdeen, delivered to the wider university community and the general public free of charge, but donations were accepted to help keep The Gaudie in print.
Attendees at the event were able to pick up the newspaper’s special ‘Aberdeen Edition’, which champions stories relating to the Granite City.
The night also came toward the end of the political podcast series ‘Road to Holyrood’. Produced by hustings organiser Innes Paton, it features candidate interviews and can be found under Gettin’ Rowdy with The Gaudie on podcast platforms.
The Gaudie encourages readers to register to vote by April 20th. Residents in Scotland, including international students, who will be 16 years old at the time of election can vote on May 7th.
A playback of the live-streamed debate can be found on YouTube.
