A PEER who shouted abuse at parliamentary security staff has accused an SNP MP of raising the issue in the House of Commons because she is “queer” and he is opposed to gay marriage.
SNP MP Hanna Bardell said the incident involving Lord Ken Maginnis was "one of the worse cases of abuse of security staff I have seen".
After forgetting his pass Maginnis called staff “crooked” as they wouldn't let him in.
The peer did not deny Bardell’s allegations but he accused her of seeking “cheap publicity” and trying to “score a few points” because he is opposed to gay marriage. Bardell said she would be reporting Maginnis to the police over the alleged hate crime.
He also called the security staff member a “little git” who was being a “jobsworth”.
READ MORE: SNP MP Hannah Bardell accuses peer of abusing security staff
If members of parliament, journalists and staff working in Parliament forget their pass they normally need to get a temporary day pass issued by officials.
But Lord Maginnis, who was in 2013 convicted of a road rage assault, instead shouted at security staff and questioned why they did not know who he was after 46 years in parliament.
He told the Huffington Post: “[It] would probably all have blown over except this Bardell woman decided to get herself a bit of publicity.
“She and I are known to be on other sides – I am opposed to abortion, I am opposed to gay people like her seeking to change marriage.
“You might say I’m old fashioned, or you could say I’m conservative in Biblical terms – I mean I’m not a preacher or anything.
“She obviously being what she is and wanting to make changes decided she would score a few points for herself.
“With no disrespect I have had a lot of experience before politics ...
“I was a major for 12 years in the Ulster Defence Regiment in Northern Ireland, I survived 10 assassination attempts, so I’m not altogether a softie if you know what I mean by that.
“Queers like Ms Bardell don’t particularly annoy me.
“Okay, she’s got her cheap publicity out of it.”
Bardell said "homophobia and abuse has no place in any workplace" and that taxpayers would be “enraged” to be funding his “comfy job in the House of Lords”.
Thanks so much to @singharj for following this up and also taking on Lord Maginnis, appears he doesn’t like folk standing up to him but homophobia and abuse has no place in any workplace.
— Hannah Bardell MP 🏴🏳️🌈 (@HannahB4LiviMP) January 8, 2020
I’ll be considering my options - our staff should not have to be exposed to this awful man. https://t.co/oPYepH28Qn
Bardell told Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle on Wednesday: "Yesterday on re-entering the building for the first time after Christmas I witnessed one of the worst cases of abuse of security staff that I have seen in my time here.
"One of the members of the other place [Lords], who I will name so as not to incriminate anybody else, Lord Ken Maginnis, had forgotten his pass – something we've all been guilty of.
"However, instead of taking the advice of the security staff – who as we all know are here for our security and our safety – he proceeded to verbally abuse and shout at both the member of staff – calling them 'crooked', saying 'did they not know who he was, he'd been here 46 years' – and refusing to take the advice and assistance of both myself, the security staff and the police that then attended.
"I have reported this incident to the authorities but I seek your advice as the member is not elected, so I'm interested to know to whom he is accountable and what can be done to make sure no member of staff on the estate is ever treated in that way or abused in the manner which I and others witnessed yesterday."
Jacob Rees-Mogg described Lord Ken Maginnis's homophobic comments as "disgraceful".
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