Reform UK is once again in hot water for the comments made by one of their candidates for public office. This time, it’s Linda Holt – a candidate for the Scottish Parliament – that’s in the spotlight. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Holt is standing for Reform in May’s Scottish Parliament elections in the Fife North East constituency. The Courier <\/em>has discovered<\/a> that Holt has made a number of inflammatory comments on social media, particularly about the former first minister of Scotland Humza Yousaf. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In social media posts, Holt described Yousaf as a “grandstanding Islamist moron” and as “not British”. She also said that while Yousaf was first minister, Scotland didn’t have a “British first minister” and said that “his background means his allegiances are naturally, even rightly, elsewhere but not with the vast majority of Scots.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n Holt was previously a Tory councillor in Fife. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Responding to the revelations, Reform’s Scotland leader Malcolm Offord told The Courier <\/em>Holt had “only just become a candidate, and she wasn\u2019t a candidate when she made those comments.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n He went on to say: \u201cI don\u2019t know the context in which she made it, I don\u2019t know when she made those comments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m not commenting on individual comments on 73 candidates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m very clear that we\u2019ve done a good vetting process. I\u2019m very clear that we\u2019ve got a very interesting group of candidates coming into Holyrood.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Holt isn’t the only Reform Scottish Parliament candidate that has proven controversial. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Daily Record <\/em>has revealed<\/a> that Senga Beresford – Reform’s candidate in Galloway and West Dumfries – has made supportive comments about far-right activist Tommy Robinson. She tweeted to Tommy Robinson when he was organising a march in London saying she was “behind you all the way”. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Beresford was also found to have supported deporting Muslims after responding to a post on X by an activist with the far-right group Britain First. Ashlea Simon, Britain First’s deputy leader asked on X “In the UK Muslims are demanding that sharia law is implemented. I demand that we deport the lot of them. Who\u2019s with me?” Beresford responded simply by saying “me”. <\/p>\n\n\n\n On Beresford’s comments, Offord said<\/a>: “This was done in a former life before she was a member of Reform UK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019ve all said things in the past that may be temperate but we need to grow up on this and not take offence to everything.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chris Jarvis is head of strategy and development at Left Foot Forward<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n \r\n\r\n\r\nLeft Foot Forward doesn’t have the backing of big business or billionaires. We rely on the kind and generous support of ordinary people like you. \r\n \r\nYou can support hard-hitting journalism that holds the right to account, provides a forum for debate among progressives, and covers the stories the rest of the media ignore. Donate today.\r\n\r\n<\/em>\r\n<\/P>\r\n