SCOTTISH NHS staff have said they feel “scared” after a Tory councillor who had questioned whether aspects of the Holocaust were “fabricated” was made non-executive director of a health board.
Ryan Houghton, who leads the Conservative group on Aberdeen Council, has faced criticism after The National revealed a history of allegedly antisemitic and Islamophobic posts online.
The Tory councillor has previously claimed that the “core teaching” of Islam is the “eventual domination” of the world, and that aspects of the Holocaust may have been “exaggerated” by the victorious Allied Forces.
He said that although there was “no credible evidence to suggest the Holocaust did not happen … I do find some of the events fabricated”.
READ MORE: Tories readmit Aberdeen councillor who claimed events around holocaust were 'fabricated'
The National was contacted by a senior figure from NHS Grampian who said that staff had been “astonished and actually scared” to hear of Houghton’s appointment.
“There is a huge community of people of diverse backgrounds [at NHS Grampian] and it is quite unacceptable to many of us that he is acting as a member of the board,” they said.
The source told The National that it was “quite remarkable” that Houghton had been appointed because, as far as they were aware, “an unreserved apology hasn’t been made”.
In 2019, when he was suspended from the Tory Party for the comments, Houghton did say he “apologised unreservedly for any hurt now caused”, but claimed the comments had been taken “out of context”.
The National was told that the feeling among members of staff at NHS Grampian was that this did “not cut the mustard”.
'Totally unacceptable'
Houghton was appointed to the health board’s board earlier this year, with a letter sent from Health Secretary Humza Yousaf in May inviting him to take up the role “in your capacity as the nominated Local Authority Councillor from Aberdeen City Council”.
Aberdeen Council has to appoint an elected member to the NHS Grampian board by law, according to its Policy on Appointments of Elected Members to Outside Bodies.
It says on the council’s website that it is responsible for the appointment of councillors “to various outside bodies”, including NHS Grampian’s board.
Aberdeen SNP councillor Christian Allard told The National that after the nomination had been made, Yousaf’s role would be “quasi-automatic”.
The senior NHS Grampian source said that Houghton’s appointment was viewed as “totally unacceptable”, adding that people more widely “weren’t aware of it - but they should be made aware”.
Aberdeen Council is currently controlled by a coalition of Conservative, Labour, and independent councillors and led by Labour’s Jenny Laing.
The Labour councillors had been suspended from their party after entering the coalition, but were reinstated after Anas Sarwar was elected leader ahead of the Holyrood elections in May.
Houghton was made the Tory group leader after his colleague Douglas Lumsden (above) was elected to be an MSP. However, he did not take on Lumsden’s role as council co-leader alongside Laing following a backlash around his previous allegedly antisemitic and Islamophobic comments.
The National’s source said that Labour councillors “would have been aware of the past comments” among discussions around who to nominate for the role on the NHS Grampian board.
They said they wondered “how on earth a person like this could have passed through the screening procedure”.
They said their motivations were not political and they had no “axe to grind with the Tories or Labour or the SNP”, but felt compelled to raise concerns around Houghton’s appointment to this paper as it was here where news of the Tory’s comments was first broken.
The National was further told that a “communication” has been or will be made to the acting chairman of the health board raising these concerns.
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The chair of the health board is Professor Lynda Lynch, with Dr John Tomlinson the vice chair. Tomlinson is currently acting chair with Lynch on long-term leave, The National understands.
Tomlinson also chairs the board of the Grampian Regional Equality Council (GREC) - a position The National’s source says means there is a clear “case to answer: they need to explain what this man [Houghton] is doing on the NHS board”.
The SNP’s Allard, who sits on GREC’s board as an elected member of Aberdeen Council, said he could vouch for the quality of the work Tomlinson did, and was sure he brought the same talent to his role at NHS Grampian.
Allard said it was not his place to comment on Houghton’s position, but added: “I would invite [him] to sit on the board of GREC - he might learn a thing or two.”
A Scottish Tory spokesperson said Houghton “had fully apologised for his comments, [and] was fully investigated by a committee, who ruled in favour of lifting his suspension”.
“Perhaps most importantly, his appointment on the board was brought forward by Humza Yousaf who said he was looking forward to working with him in addressing challenges and opportunities.”
The Scottish Tory spokesperson further pointed to comments made by Mark Taylor, the former chairman of Aberdeen Synagogue and Jewish Community Centre (ASJCC), who said that while what Houghton had said “wasn’t right ... it shouldn’t be held against him for the rest of his life”.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: "There is no place in public life for holocaust denial, racism or any other form of discrimination and prejudice.
“The Health Secretary has no role in deciding which councillors are chosen by local authorities to sit on health boards – other than issuing a standardised routine letter to them after their appointment.
“We understand the concerns being raised about this appointment and will be in contact with NHS Grampian to check that all correct processes have been followed and to discuss the serious allegations being made.”
An NHS Grampian spokesperson said the health board "takes all matters relating to equality, diversity and human rights very seriously".
They added: "We have received the concerns and are currently seeking clarity about due process."
Aberdeen Council said the case was not theirs to answer.
Ryan Houghton and the GREC were also approached for comment.
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