A member of Scotland's Parliament has come out after hearing that a newspaper was preparing to out her. Margaret Smith, 43, said she is involved with a woman who just recently left her husband.
'This is first and foremost a personal matter,' said Smith, who represents Edinburgh West for the Liberal Democrats. 'But I am happy to confirm that I am in a relationship with a female partner. My family are aware of the relationship and have been very supportive. My partner is not in the public eye. We would hope that the media would respect the privacy of both families at this time.'
Meanwhile, another Scottish MP is under fire for gay-bashing.
John Swinburne, who represents the Central Region for the Scottish Senior Citizens Unity Party, said: 'I really don't know what's wrong with these people [gays]. There must be something we can do to help them. They must be sick or something.'
Swinburne, 72, later attempted damage control, saying: 'My words have been taken out of context. People can do what they like as long as it's legal. I have no problem with gays.'
In a second interview, he added: 'If I came across as homophobic I can only apologize to people who took that view because it is not my position. What I did say was that I didn't understand the problem because my generation swept it under the carpet.'