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!

Ah no. I should now better by now than to reply to you, as you are unable to follow an argument, make irrelevant points, and have minimal debating skills.

I'm not opposed to banning greyhound racing or snare traps. My point is that it's easy to do this, there won't be much opposition to it besides from some farmers and game keepers (the snare ban, I mean here) and none to racing because it has disappeared allready. It's showboating but I suppose it will look good to the Summerhall cafe crowd.
But cheap and easy laws aren't all what we need and should expect from a Green party that was in a (sort of) coalition government for a while at least. There are serious and important policy decision that we need to talk about such as about power generation and land use, about growth and its limitations, about demographic development, about biosphere preservation, ... All this needs proper and very likely very difficult discussions and good scientific knowledge and any progress here will need a lot more commitment and engagement, and yes I'm very disappointed that there is nobody in the Green Party (both E+W and Scotland) that seems to care even a tiny bit about all this.

Banning something that no longer exists is showboating politics, only a mediocre political classes go for low hanging fruit because they know there won't be any opposition to it. It's more about virtue signally and racking up ego boosting 'firsts' than governance.

But here you are - replying to me. And, yet again, I am telling you that I don't have a clue who you are.

You're just proving your lack of debating skills. Who I am = irrelevant. Do you only accept arguments from people you know? Guess what, I don't know you either (thank god).

Yes you are and it's good you recognise that. Especially as you keep referencing me. Maybe time to let it go? It's quite disconcerting. Take care though!

Pigs, mud, wrestle. Yeah.

😬

I thought the distinction was going to be that E&W were saner and more accepting of GC views. I had no idea that the claim was going to be that the SGP was more accepting when they have people like Maggie Chapman in parliament.

I like Maggie.

However, way to misread the thread again 🤣

I saw Q Manivannan being sworn in. He referred to “Scotland, my bonnie bonnie home” in his speech, which just seems a bit fake. I can’t imagine living for a few years in Texas and being all “howdy y’all”

It really is pathetic Brigadoon mince

There is no pleasing some people. An immigrant integrates, speaks English fluently, uses local patios correctly and is enthusiastically wanting to contribute to their adopted country and people complain and call it fake and presume they either came illegally or are here illegally now that they’re not supporting themselves financially. They can’t do anything right according to some.

This is amazing - were women observers in the chamber not asked to remove “political” suffragette colours previously?!

You can KBO with this line here on the thread but it makes no difference. The Scots who have immigration concerns have had them magnified by the legal loophole. If it’s not closed by the Parliament i predict it will be a problem in future for the SNP. Q will be under the microscope - rather like a woman would usually be when a “first”. So at least he’ll be getting the full female experience in that regard

It certainly shows the lie that they really do mind the “right sort” of immigrants meaning the highly educated with doctorates, that fully integrate and choose to throw themselves into British life and politics like Dr Q here.

Basically, they don’t want any immigrants at all. Full stop.

I don’t want people with no permanent residence here and who’ve been here five minutes governing my country. No matter their colour, creed or beliefs

Its not really that controversial

Guilty snort at “local patios” and imagining how you could use one incorrectly 😂 yes I know it’s a typo, but funny 🤣

This.

You go into parliament to change things. There is no point being in politics if you aren't going to try to change things.

I don't want somebody who hasn't got any right to stay here long term, and who's only been in the country for the blink of an eye, to have a part in changing anything.

In your opinion. There are nuances you dont appear to be able to grasp.

I enjoyed that too. Patios get very little use in my corner of Scotland as it’s too bloody windy!

Sure some people just want lower immigration. It’s not personal.

I think calling a country you’ve lived in for less than 5 years home and using local language is fake. I think the same about anyone doing that anywhere.

When people complain about wanting educated immigrants they surely mean engineers, scientists etc. Not people doing a PhD on meaningless topics like grief studies in international relations. Also he doesn’t even believe in evolution so educated but not intelligent.

Yes - there has been more than one incident. Here (Nov 2022) women in a committee room discussing gender reform were asked to remove their suffragette colours, and when they wouldn't the women themselves were removed, despite many rainbow lanyards adorning the necks of MSPs on TRSOH. https://www.heraldscotland.com/politics/23125768.woman-suffragette-colours-asked-leave-holyrood-committee-room/ (bonus pic of Maggie Chapman in a rainbow lanyard). Around the same time a member of the public wearing a suffragette scarf was ejected from the chamber during the gender debate, after refusing to remove her scarf. https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/holyrood-scottish-parliament-suffragette-scarf-apology-b1040309.html

After some publicity, apologies and and retractions, in March 2024 rainbow lanyards were banned for staff.

I don't know how Chapman and Nevens got away with the keffiyeh, an overt political statement.