When queer icon and former MP Mhairi Black talks, Scotland listens. And this time, she’s not holding back. The former youngest MP in modern British history just slammed the Scottish National Party (SNP) with a fierce mic drop, citing their betrayal of trans rights and lukewarm stance on Palestine. Her message? She’s out—and she’s not sorry.
In a bombshell interview, Black revealed she’s had enough of the SNP’s “capitulation on LGBT rights, trans rights in particular,” saying she couldn’t stomach their latest moves. “There have just been too many times when I’ve thought, ‘I don’t agree with what you’ve done there,’” she said. For a politician known for speaking truth to power, this was less a goodbye and more a full-on political roast.
Black made history in 2015 as the youngest MP elected since 1832 and has never been shy about her lesbian identity or her unwavering support for the trans community. She once famously told politicians to “leave them the hell alone”—a sentiment now echoed in her reasons for exiting the party she once championed. This latest move, she says, stems from the SNP losing its backbone when it comes to protecting LGBTQ+ lives. “Being trans is not something to be feared,” she previously said. “It’s just an aspect of a human being.”
Let’s be clear: Mhairi Black is still fiercely pro-independence and leans even more to the left these days. But she’s done cosigning a party that sidelines queer people for political convenience. Instead, she’s shifting her energy toward causes that actually show up for the community—like the Good Law Project, which has fought tooth and nail to defend trans legal rights in the UK.
Her departure doesn’t just shake up Scottish politics—it sends a clear signal to queer voters: we won’t be used, ignored, or thrown under the campaign bus. LGBTQ+ rights aren’t bargaining chips, and when politicians treat them that way, they lose not just votes but champions like Mhairi Black.
And let’s not forget, this is the same woman who called out JK Rowling for fanning flames against trans folks and dragged anti-trans activists for using “lesbian erasure” as a weak excuse to marginalize others. “The only time I’ve felt erased as a lesbian is when anti-trans activists shouted me down,” she said back in 2020. Mic. Drop.
The SNP might’ve thought it could quietly drift to the right on queer issues—but Mhairi Black just made sure the whole country noticed. And while the halls of Westminster may feel a little more toxic without her, her voice will no doubt continue shaking things up from the outside.
Scotland, don’t say she didn’t warn you.