This morning came the inevitable naming of the second SNP MP facing investigation for harassment against a member of staff: Patricia Gibson. Gibson is accused of “grabbing” the 22-year-old staffer’s hand, pulling at him, and saying “things like ‘You should come home with me'”. The naming of Gibson comes shortly after the naming of former chief whip Patrick Grady over harassment claims from two young male staffers. Intriguingly, according to The Herald, Gibson has been provided with information from MP witnesses – submitted as part of the investigation – which doesn’t sound compliant with a standard complaints process…

The sheer onslaught of SNP scandals prompted a look at the current parliamentary MP cohort, which is in a sorry state. Of the 44 MPs elected less than two years ago:

• Two (Neale Hanvey and Kenny MacAskill) have defected to the Alba party
• Neil Gray has resigned to fight for a seat in the Scottish Parliament
• Neale Hanvey was elected as an independent after  being suspended by the party during the election for antisemitic social media posts
  • (He was re-admitted in May 2020 only to quit for Alba in February)
• Margaret Ferrier was sacked after travelling to and from London with Covid, subsequently arrested and charged by Police Scotland in February
• Joanna Cherry was sacked from the front bench for “unacceptable behaviour” in February
• Drew Hendry was named by the Speaker and suspended from the Commons in December 2020 after stealing the mace during a debate
• Patricia Gibson faces allegations of harassment
• Patrick Grady has been suspended and faces two separate allegations of harassment

While this list excludes controversies that didn’t see repercussions – such as Douglas Chapman claiming the British Army was “attacking” Scots online – it totals 18% of the SNP’s 44-seats won at the last election. Guido can’t recall so many casualties from a single party in such a short space of time…