City council leader suspended over ‘sexual messages sent to Ukrainian refugees’
A senior Labour politician has been suspended by the party following reports he bombarded Ukrainian refugees with sexually inappropriate messages on dating apps.
Cammy Day, leader of Edinburgh’s City Council, is facing calls to resign after two refugees contacted police over a series of unsolicited messages sent by Mr Day in which he asked probing questions about their sexual preferences.
One of the Ukrainians told the Daily Record they felt ‘under pressure’ to respond when Mr Day messaged them on a dating app, and said they tried to ignore his repeated hints about sex and ‘meeting up for wine’.
The individual, who fled Ukraine in 2022 following Russia’s invasion, told the publication: ‘From the very beginning when I arrived in Scotland I was open to finding new friends as I was by myself in the country.
‘After the trauma of the war, I felt lonely and also a stranger in a new country. When Cammy Day first wrote to me from several social medias I was surprised that a person of such a high position was interested in me, and then I saw him a couple of times at pro-Ukrainian events.
‘He found and subscribed to me on social media and started liking my stories intensively, sending kissing emojis, especially when I posted gym and pool photos.
‘One day he found me on a dating website and messaged me which was very strange to me as he was already following my social media and knew that I knew who he was.’
They said a number of friends had also been contacted by Mr Day both on social media and on dating apps, and were unsure why he seemed to be ‘interested specifically in Ukrainians.’
A second refugee, who has since left the country, also said they had received lots of messages from Mr Day containing ‘lots of emojis and reactions to posts and asked to meet up.
‘It was too much and I didn’t know how to say I didn’t want him to contact me any more because of his position,’ they said.
Police have since announced they have launched an investigation into inappropriate behavior and Scottish Labour said the council leader will remain suspended until an outcome is reached.
Several councillors and senior officials have been interviewed in connection with the allegations, some of whom had previously raised concerns about his behavior.
A Labour party spokeswoman said: ‘The Labour Party takes all complaints seriously.
‘They are fully investigated in line with our rules and procedures, and any appropriate action is taken.’
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar (Centre) says he the allegations are ‘deeply distressing’ (Picture: Getty)
Mr Day has not commented on the allegations but has previously said he does not know what the police investigation is related to, and says he has not been contacted by police officers.
The councillor for Edinburgh’s Forth ward is one of Scottish Labour’s most prominent local authority leaders, occasionally appearing with Anas Sarwar at events.
During an interview on BBC Scotland’s Sunday Show, the Scottish Labour leader said the claims are ‘deeply distressing’ and the party took ‘immediate action’ when it became aware on Saturday.
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