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!

This is the simple and relevant point isn’t it.

Restrict standing for local or central government to people with actual British citizenship be it national or acquired. It’s common sense and completely uncontroversial.

I also can’t imagine the mindset of being in another country temporarily and putting yourself forward to represent people in a parliament. It’s exceptionally arrogant. how anyone in this position could think it is in any way right that they could help set laws and policy over people who are actual citizens. How arrogant (both on the part of the party and the individual) to think it’s ok for someone with uncertainty on being able to fulfil their term. It shows complete disregard to the people who MSPs are supposed and paid to serve.

It’s nothing to do with NB or whatnot stuff, and I fear that because of the trans aspect, people who object will be called bigoted, and Reform will have a field day. So unnecessary.

This is the issue

He gets the student visa - 20 hours work limit a week - and if he’s not a student he’s in breach of the terms. So he won’t have the right to hold an elected post.

He has been elected to a full time post, so automatically has to work full time for the £77k (?) annual salary. He can’t do that on the student visa work limit while also completing a PhD.

whatever way you look at it, his visa situation is a problem.

Now if he had a mandate and had been a named candidate who won the vote, then special arrangements might be possible for the visa. But he didn’t. No one voted for him as he’s a list candidate like Maggie Chapman. So why should he get special terms when maybe no one ever expected him to get a seat?

He should get his student visa, be told to complete his studies and give up the MSP position to the next on the list who actually qualifies

Spot on @KnottyAuty

Someone who does not have a legal right to residency should not be able to stand for public office

You may not be bothered @Echobelly but a lot of others are.

Some of us are also 'bothered' that a man is claiming to be a woman and will no doubt be used as an example of increased representation of woman.

Bollox, literally

They are non binary - not a trans woman.

Yeah, because that's a real thing 😄

Someone referred to him as she on X and got told off because his pronouns are they/them, but apparently he has also referred to himself as a woman in the past 🙄

"Speaking after the election result, Manivannan told supporters My name is Dr Q Manivannan, I am a transgender Tamil immigrant..."

It is to them.

So, he isn't actually a PhD student anymore?

Q describes themself as a doctor so he must have finished his PhD and therefore would be eligible for a graduate visa, which would allow them to remain in the UK for three years: https://www.gov.uk/graduate-visa

I know that thank you, but many people who have NRPF either have no right to work (for example asylum seekers) or limited right to work (like students). Given what he said at that event he could have been either or both, hence why I wondered about his right to work.

I also can’t imagine the mindset of being in another country temporarily and putting yourself forward to represent people in a parliament. It’s exceptionally arrogant. how anyone in this position could think it is in any way right that they could help set laws and policy over people who are actual citizens.

However, the whole gender ideology is breathtakingly arrogant in its insistence on controlling the rights, actions and speech of others.

It’s no surprise that, apart from confused young people who hate their bodies, it attracts men who identify as women (or something other than their sex) that are exceptionally self centred and selfish and who would love nothing else than to set laws and policy over actual citizens. The ideology is grounded in a desire to control. Add in a touch of post colonialism retribution on a good salary and it’s a highly desirable position for Dr Q. What the phd was in?

I completely agree with you on the arrogance of certain men on this issue (I am GC) but the arrogance of this particular man could have been prevented had our laws on who can stand been different (and logical and fair). As it stands I think the trans thing will attract more defence and pushback from the “poor and marginalised must be supported” greens and others, and the key point about eligibility will end up mixed in and weakened. A total mess.

He’s finished! Hes got his PhD. He’s entitled to work now, and is in the process of switching to graduate visa. Seriously, the visa stuff is not an issue.

Whether someone who doesn’t have ILR is allowed to stand for election is the issue.

I think that there are several issues:

1. Should someone without indefinite leave to remain be allowed to vote? Should they be allowed to hold office? What other countries allow this? Is there a reciprocal agreement elsewhere? (No)
2. Should anyone who is not a British citizen be allowed to vote? Should they be allowed to hold office? Is this allowed in any other country in the world?
3. Does Q’s current or future visa even allow Q to hold office? It is unclear what Q’s current visa status is. If on a student visa then not eligible to work full time. If on a 3 year graduate visa then that won’t even cover their entire 5 year term in Scottish parliament. It does not seem that Q is eligible for a global talent visa based on its strict criteria. If Q violates visa terms to serve in parliament anyway then Q should be deported, as should anyone violating the terms of their visa.

I think that if anyone believes the answer is “yes” to point 2 then they are being extremely naive, and the UK is highly unusual in allowing this. It’s not about whether a candidate is “kind” (whatever that means) or whether or not everyone likes them.

It highlights a lot of things within British democracy that many voters were previously unaware of. For green voters, who do not want borders and who want to reduce limitations to immigration and who want to increase funding for migrants and increase benefits generally, this sort of event in our electoral process welcome. For others, it is not. It raises questions of fairness, at the very least. Taken to its extreme, if the greens did reach their goals and take their manifesto to its endpoint, then who on earth would pay for all of this?

3 - yes Q is allowed to work full time (bored of stating that now…)
2 - if you have ILR and intend to spend your life here then why shouldn’t you have a voice? You shouldn’t also need to apply for UK citizenship (which can be problematic for some nationals as they’d have to renounce their other citizenship).
1 - agree.

He's a man, silly.

Nailed it.

Add to that the absolute disrespect for process, ethics, law and basic sense - signing up to a post with 20 hour limit on working hours and not having permission to stay in the country .....

based on the two Green Party reps in the papers just in the last 7 days, would anyone think 'gosh they'd be great in charge of a country'?

She knows, she’s just virtue signalling. She pops in regularly to scold us for not being kind to misogynistic men.

Iris Duane also posted this

But that isn’t what has happened. He has permission to be in the country and permission to work full time.

This thread is so weird. Made me think of the Family Guy clip. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3OR_D2EEPS4

The Telegraph article says he is on a student visa. Thats limited to 20hours work per week. Once he applies for the graduate visa it will be up to 8 weeks before a decision is given. The article says he’s been crowdfunding or asking friends to pay his visa fees… So how can he take up a full time post as MSP and get sworn in etc. I don’t understand how the regular student visa qualified him to stand in the first place as the working hours restrictions mean he can’t do the job… And what happens if his mates dont pay his fees? The whole situation is just weird

The Telegraph hasn’t done its due diligence. He’s graduated, and is now able to work FT while he is in the process of changing visas. That’s entirely normal.

Edited: Yes I do agree he / The Greens should have sorted out the cost of the visa first, and at least get it fast tracked. But there’s no question that he won’t get it, or that he can work FT until he has.

If they are allowed under the rules to stand then I do think they should be given a visa to stay. They have been elected under our electoral rules. If voters vote for a party on the list system, they are effectively supporting everyone on that list as if everyone did the same, they’d all get in (it’s why I didn’t vote Green as I usually do: Mridul Wadhwa was also on the list further down). I do think there’s issues with deporting an elected representative. You are also depriving their constituents of the voice they chose.

Whether someone without ILR should be allowed to stand is another question. I am a bit concerned about restricting that. Government could presumably withdraw ILR from non-citizens at any time if someone was causing them difficulties. But do feel a bit uneasy that someone can make laws and then skedaddle off if it doesn’t work out. But thats the case for anyone with dual nationality.

Q did stand in a Council by-election also, btw.