MP, 28, says she's quitting - branding Parliament 'toxic' and 'poisonous'

04 July 2023 , 13:17

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Mhairi Black has announced she is standing down as an MP

One of the UK's youngest MPs has announced she is quitting - describing Westminster as "poisonous" and "toxic".

The SNP's Mhairi Black described Parliament as "one of the most unhealthy workplaces that you could ever be in" and said she was alarmed with "what people can get away with".

Ms Black, the party's deputy leader in Westminster, told The News Agents podcast: "I think it is one of the most unhealthy workplaces that you could ever be in. It's a toxic environment. Just the entire design of the place and how it functions is just the opposite of everything that I find comfortable…

"It's definitely a poisonous place. Whether that's because of what folk can get away with in it or the number of personal motivations and folk having ulterior motives for things, and it's just not a nice place to be in."

Ms Black has been an MP since 2015, when she won her Paisley and Renfrewshire South seat at the age of just 20 - becoming the youngest MP since 1832.

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She made an immediate impact with an electrifying maiden speech describing the sickening impact of benefit cuts on constituents.

Ms Black said that you can never "switch off", as opposition MPs are often "looking for opportunities" when they talk to you.

She told host Emily Maitlis: "And also, given the unsociable hours that Westminster works as well, it feels like you're spending a lot of your life there. And in the run up to the next election, I've realized, that will be almost 10 years that I'll have been elected. So, a third of my life I've spent in Westminster, which gives me the ick.’"

Former Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was among those to pay tribute, saying the reasons "resonate".

Ms Sturgeon tweeted: "Both gutted by and entirely understanding of this. Her reasons resonate. But what a loss of a unique talent, not just to the SNP but to politics generally. I only hope it’s temporary. The world needs more Mhairi Blacks in politics, not fewer."

In 2018 Ms Black described the scale of misogynistic abuse she faces online with trolls regularly.

She repeated the insults aimed at her during a speech in Parliament and said she felt uncomfortable reading them out but warned some people felt "comfortable flinging these words around every day".

Current Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf said her decision to quit should be an "important wake up call".

He said: “She has been a trailblazer - a passionate supporter of independence, equality, social justice, and simply of trying to make life better for her constituents and the wider Scottish public. She has also served as a role model for young people, especially women, with an interest or a desire to get involved in politics.

“I know that Mhairi has been critical of the toxic, hostile environment of Westminster, which serves as an important wake-up call to those who are determined to safeguard our democracy."