A TORY MSP met with a gender-critical activist who “flashed” Holyrood while wearing a pubic wig at the passage of controversial gender law reforms.

Russell Findlay posed for a picture with a merkin – which can be used to cover a woman’s genitals – at a pub with a group of activists including For Women Scotland directors Marion Calder and Susan Smith, and Elaine Miller, who exposed herself while wearing the pubic wig during a Scottish Parliament debate last week.

The MSP for the West of Scotland region posted a picture of himself and a group of 10 women with a protest banner in the background of the shot with the words “Privacy, Dignity, Safety” – a slogan which was displayed by activists on the same day as the exposure stunt.

He said: “Police Scotland are investigating Elaine Miller’s parly protest against SNP’s gender self-ID law.

“Well, here’s me with [Miller], holding one of the pubic wigs that’s triggered this ludicrous fit of the vapours.

“Surely cops got better things to do than pursue fake pubes.”

Police Scotland confirmed on Monday they had received complaints about the incident, which took place on Thursday, December 22.

The force was approached for further comment on Tuesday.

Findlay is a fierce critic of the Government’s reforms, which make it easier for transgender people to change their gender on official documents.

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He has repeatedly echoed the concerns of gender-critical activists who say the law poses a threat to the sanctity of same-sex spaces.

The Scottish Government has denied this, saying single-sex exemptions for facilities such as women’s refuges are protected under existing legislation.

Proponents of the new law, which has yet to be signed off by the King, have also pointed out that trans women currently have access to single-sex spaces, including toilets and changing rooms, and have dismissed concerns that predatory men could obtain gender recognition certificates to prey on women as fearmongering.

The UK Government has threatened to try to block the reforms and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said the Scottish Government's bill will be reviewed in Westminster. 

Responding to The National's article, Findlay said: "It is entirely proper for MSPs to meet with individuals and groups, and I'm perplexed at this report which seems to be a cheap attempt to hint at non-existent wrongdoing and take attention away from Nicola Sturgeon's dangerous gender self-ID law and her dismissal of women's concerns."

UPDATE: The top line of this article previously had the word “before” in place of the word “at”. The amendment is to make clear that the reference is to the merkin protest, not the Tory MSP’s meeting with the activist.