ANOTHER candidate standing in next Thursday’s local election has had to apologise unreservedly for a social media post that made light of women and mental health issues. 


Jean Hall Muir, a Dunfermline Central candidate standing for the SNP, shared one of the same controversial posts that Labour candidate Garry Haldane is now being investigated for. 


The Press highlighted to the Scottish Labour Party last week that items on postman Mr Haldane’s Facebook page had been sexist and racist.
The party and Royal Mail are now investigating. 


Ms Hall Muir, who chairs her local community council, is standing alongside SNP group leader Councillor Neale Hanvey in Dunfermline Central ward. 


The social media post in question, from three years ago, stated: “25 per cent of women in this country are on medication for mental illness. That’s scary. It means 75 per cent are running around untreated.”


 A spokesperson from Dunfermline SNP said: “Jean Hall Muir is a vocal advocate for mental health support and has had personal experience of challenges it can bring, so she would like to apologise, unreservedly, for any offence she inadvertently caused by sharing this post. 


“It is of note that while Scottish Labour have yet to condemn the judgement of Mr Haldane in sharing a catalogue of racist, sexist, and other offensive material online, the Scottish Labour Party has found time to go through an SNP candidate’s social media history, going back years, to find anything they can attempt to claim equivalence on.


“The SNP are investing £150 million in additional funds developing mental health services at the same time as Fife Labour have cut all financial support for the local Dunfermline charity, Headroom, which delivers expert counselling to children in local secondary schools and is now at risk of closure. An SNP administration will work to keep this service going.” 


The Conservatives haven’t managed to stay away from social media controversy either. Their candidate for Burntisland, Kinghorn and Western Kirkcaldy, Kathleen Leslie, had to apologise last week for Twitter slurs against SNP supporters, calling First Minister Nicola Sturgeon a “drooling hag” and a “wee fish wife”.