Trans Green Party candidate with no British visa elected to Holyrood

[IwantToRetire]

Q Manivannan, who identifies as non-binary, was elected as an MSP on the Edinburgh & Lothians East list for the pro-independence Scottish Greens.

It was reported earlier this week that the former PhD student has appealed to colleagues for £2,089 of funding for a temporary graduate visa.

This would give the anthropologist and poet a further three years to work and live in the UK, picking up the taxpayer-funded MSP salary of £77,711.

Manivannan is said to have told colleagues this would help buy time to save up the £5,047 cost of applying for a global talent visa, the UK immigration category for promising individuals in specific sectors.

The self-described “queer Tamil immigrant” was only able to stand in the election after SNP ministers loosened the rules over who could be a Holyrood candidate.

Full article https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2026/05/09/trans-green-party-candidate-migrant-elected-holyrood/
And at https://archive.is/LhZYy

Reform couldn't have dreamed for a better headline!

They have no life experience

They have been here for five minutes

How can they possibly represent a Scottish constituency?

Apologies if this has already been posted.

wingsoverscotland.com/the-hills-of-far-away/

This may have already been mentioned on the thread but sharing just in case. Two elected Green Party councillors (one in Hackney and one in Camden) have been disqualified because they are teachers working in local maintained schools. The council will have to meet the costs of by-elections to select eligible candidates.

LA Teaching contracts make it very clear that you can’t be local councillors and it's simple incompetence that the Green Party didn’t screen their candidates.

'They’re not an immigrant.'

You seemed pretty sure in your response to me.

So we’re now in a situation where a current MSP is an illegal immigrant with no right to remain in the country, but he could nevertheless continue perfectly legally to go home to India and make Scotland’s laws for the next five years by Zoom meeting.

Fascinating. Insane. But interesting.

Wings also highlights problematic issues with his visa / applying for a visa but my money is on applying for asylum due to his trans status and risk of persecution back home. Plus, SMP infinitely more money than the dreary work of being an academic.

Good I intended it to be, it was in response to you admitting you couldn't be bother to read the thread but still went ahead and pontificated on the thread. It was the speaking without knowledge that would make you good Green candidate, you political alignment is irrelevant to my comment.
I'm not a feminist, I stopped being one of those after the feminist movement downgrading women to mere irrelevant bit players in their own cause.

My cause is women and young adolescent females, (otherwise known as girls). Women (plus girls) only, no intersectionality, no omnicause, just the female of the species, young and old.

He is still called a "doctoral candidate " in this article in the Times:
https://www.thetimes.com/article/4642e4a1-39a1-417d-a701-91ea5961443f?shareToken=7ef3002f0f97b8932a277657aa003fb2&ver=article

In April 2024, Clark told MSPs there was no “compelling reason” to extend the right to stand in elections to those on temporary visas and raised fears it could open the door to foreign interference in democracy.

However, he said the Scottish government had “shrugged its shoulders” and pushed ahead with the change.

It's stupidity like this on the part of parties like the SNP which has directly led to the rise of Reform.

The SNP and the Greens think they're being so inclusive and progressive, while the rest of us look on, horrified, because we don't want a bunch of foreigners living in foreign countries to be making our laws in parliament.

I don't think it makes me a xenophobe to believe that the UK should be governed by British people living in the UK.

According to the Telegraph it was the Tory's that done it.

"The Scottish Tories called on the Home Secretary to investigate whether Manivannan breached the terms of the visa, given that student visa holders are banned from taking permanent jobs.
However, officials have confirmed there is no need to investigate because being an MSP is not considered employment under a quirk in the immigration rules.
Under changes brought in October 2022, filling – or standing for – the post of elected office in local or devolved government is not considered a form of employment.
The rules, introduced by the previous Conservative government, state: “Standing for or filling an elected post in local or devolved government [or legislatures] is not considered to be employment for the purposes of the immigration rules, and conditions restricting employment do not affect the ability to undertake such activities."
It is understood this extends to the paying of support staff, such as researchers or caseworkers, which is vital for MSPs to do their job.
The rules mean that Manivannan will be allowed to fulfil the role until their student visa expires at the end of the year.
However, until they get a graduate visa, it remains unclear whether they will be able to continue in the post after that point. Manivannan has applied for the paperwork, which would allow them to work in the UK for up to three years.
There is still doubt Manivannan will be able to see through the five-year-long parliamentary term in its entirety after the Home Office said being an MSP alone does not qualify you for the necessary Global Talent Visa, which allows its holders to work in the UK for five years."

Pot, kettle and black came to mind.

I didn't continue to read the thread, not because I couldn't be bothered but because I came to the conclusion it was yet another thread about trans and not about feminism.
I voted Labour all my life, or spoiled my ballot. I wonder if you are a member or at least a supporter of Reform.

Surely it should be obvious to all that to be eligible to run a country the very least that should be required is that you should be a citizen of that country?

Never mind not even be allowed to live there long term

I should add that I posted in this thread because of the residence issues

@DrBlackbird
By DrBlackbird·
12/04/2026 06:20
I’m here for feminist theoretical debate. What aspect of feminism did you want to debate?

Bit of a turnaround DrBlackbird.- that was only a month ago.

So you didn't continue to read the thread because you assumed the whole content of over 300 posts was summarised in the first few posts.

Do you understand how discussion forums work? (Obviously the answer to that is "no".)

And thinking that Britain should be governed by British people living in the UK doesn't mean that you support Reform.

Being politically homeless because the parties on the left have abandoned women does not mean anyone automatically shifts to align with Reform. You’re not the only one on the thread to consider themselves a liberal and to despair at the rise of Farage. What horrible remarks you make

The bit above is interesting:

the post of elected office in local or devolved government is not considered a form of employment.

This has been used as an excuse not to investigate the visa problems but isnt it also a reason why this “job” cant qualify for a Visa? Or does self employment count?

what a mess - it’s just like the Reform debacle at the last GE. The candidates they stood - some were appalling. And rightly they were roundly criticised. It’s just a load of rookie errors and it’s scary to think such a bunch of rookies seek so much power so quickly. It rarely ends well does it?!

Well it's useful to see in real time the encapsulation of the attitude of Labour as a party.

Unable to hear or comprehend anything said that isn't from another party member zealot, entirely stuck on their own assumptions and prejudices and a belief in their moral superiority over the scum who are obviously just stupid and evil or would be Like Their Betters, and absolutely bewildered as to why when they're so wonderful and keep saying so, that the scum won't vote for them.

Labour's dead. It's finished. And Labour killed it. What comes next is entirely on their shoulders. Because instead of listening, understanding, doing something about it, they're still off in their own little world.

Well quite.

‘Bit of a turnaround’ - What on earth are you on about @highame? You’d have to link the thread for full understanding or explain in fuller sentences what you mean.

Re that comment of mine you’ve so helpfully unearthed, I vaguely recall that when I checked, that poster had not returned to discuss theories about feminism. Was that you? Btw, many threads here do discuss feminism theoretically as well as practically but if you want one purely on theory, you’re free to start one.

However, the bottom line is you’re unhappy with a focus in these threads on the impact of gender ideology on women’s rights and safeguarding for children. Fine! That is entirely your prerogative! Feminism chat will be more to your taste then. Start one on feminist theory there.

But why on earth do you come on threads grouped under the title: Feminism: Sex and gender discussions to complain and be rude insinuating that posters are stupid because we’re discussing sex and gender?

So you came on a thread with 'trans' in the title, and based on not reading any of the comments on the thread you came to the conclusion that it was a 'trans' thread and nothing to do with feminism.

Having not read any of the comments you don't know anything about the comments the person in question has made that a feminist might consider misogynist. Missed opportunity for a self IDing feminist there don't you think.
Voting for one party all your life, is not the noble thing you think it is, it means your thinking hasn't grown or evolved for decades, it's just stuck in a rut. Just like implying someone is a Reform voter is not the insult you think it is, there is more than one way to approach the problems this country has, and if we don't explore ones that differ from the approaches that have lead us to this near collapse, we will only accelerate our complete collapse in to dysfunctionality.

This thread is on the sex and gender board. This was set up specifically for the discussion of transgenderism and its impact on women and girls.

If you're not interested in these discussions, but want to discuss other feminist issues, you could try looking at feminist chat.
https://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/feminism

It's pretty ridiculous to come onto a part of the site that's for discussion of a specific topic, and then complain that we're discussing that topic.

I saw this on X. Apparently Q is not NB nor transgender - just trans. So apparently there are 2 new trans MPs - one transgender and one transitioning something else although even the Scottish Greens don’t know what this is.

All comments taken on board however, if I'm really awful for asking if someone was a member of Reform, then all those assuming I'm pro green are equally awful.

Enough, my work here is done😂😂😂

p.s. I was here when the threads changed. If I remember, it was feminist debaters being fed up of the focus being predominantly on trans issues that meant a feminists wanted a separate board for trans issues.

What work? But you don't seem to be making a lot of sense, so you won't be missed.