By GB News (Politics) | Created at 2026-10-06 10:46:55 | Updated at 2026-10-06 11:51:43
1 hour ago
Scottish National Party (SNP) councillors have proposed offering a "civic apology" to Britons who were accused of witchcraft.
Members of the nationalist party at Stirling Council have called for a recognition of "injustices" towards those who faced "persecution" after being accused of being witches in the Scottish city.
The SNP councillors behind the push have been accused of having "warped priorities" by opposition parties, who have told them to focus on providing local services and building homes.
On Thursday, the SNP-led council will debate a motion which says the authority "expresses its profound regret for the injustice suffered by those accused of witchcraft in Stirling".
It also calls on Lord Provost of Stirling to issue "a civic apology to those accused, persecuted, convicted or executed" in the Scottish city.
The motion also demands Stirling Council acknowledges the impact of the persecutions and ensures its legacy is "appropriately remembered within the city’s heritage and educational work".
It also requires council officers to engage with local historians and community groups to find "an appropriate way of commemorating those who suffered", the Scottish Daily Mail reports.
The leader of the Conservative group on Stirling Council, Neil Benny, described the motion as "absurd".
SNP councillors have called for a recognition of 'injustices' towards those who faced 'persecution' after being accused of witchcraft
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He fumed: "The SNP have decided to spend time talking about witchcraft in the Stirling area.
"We won’t bother with the potholes in the roads, crime in the city centre, building more houses or creating opportunities for our children.
"Instead we will spend time and money on reparations to witches who were prosecuted hundreds of years ago.
"The totally warped priorities of the SNP are quite breathtaking and this isn’t about representing or serving your citizens but using your position to further your own hobby-horses."
The SNP motion demands Stirling Council acknowledges the impact of witchcraft persecutions in the city
Mr Benny described the motion as bringing local democracy into "disrepute", before adding: "I hope people realise it’s only the SNP who pull stunts like this."
The Tory councillor called for the motion - initially proposed by Rosemary Fraser from the SNP - to be withdrawn.
The proposition brands the prosecution, torture and conviction of those suspected of being witches as a "profound injustice".
The motion also makes reference to the Stirling witch trials of 1658/59, which involved a group of suspected witches from Alloa.
Nicola Sturgeon issued an apology on behalf of the Scottish Government to all those convicted and executed under witchcraft laws
The trials saw several women interrogated and made to give forced confessions implicating other suspects.
The SNP councillors' motion is not the first time the nationalist party has taken action over the historical treatment of those alleged to have been involved in witchcraft.
In 2022, then-first minister Nicola Sturgeon issued a posthumous apology on behalf of the Scottish Government to all those convicted and executed under witchcraft laws in the country.
She described the persecutions as "injustice on a colossal scale" and claimed they were largely driven by "misogyny".
An estimated 1,500 people suspected of being witches were put to death in Scotland alone.
