London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Aug 22, 2025

Men must challenge misogynistic behaviour, says Nicola Sturgeon

Men must challenge misogynistic behaviour, says Nicola Sturgeon

Scotland’s first minister says society should stop expecting women to fix problems of sexism and harassment
Men across Scotland must challenge themselves and one another over misogynistic behaviour, Nicola Sturgeon has said, as she called for events of the past few weeks to mark a turning point “where we stop expecting women to fix these problems, and put the full glare where it belongs, on men who behave in a deeply unacceptable way”.

Sturgeon was responding to a question at first minister’s questions on Thursday about Rhona Malone, a former firearms officer who was found by an employment tribunal to have been victimised by Police Scotland colleagues in a “horrific” workplace culture condemned as an “absolute boys’ club”.

The Scottish Labour MSP Daniel Johnson asked if further investigation was needed into the culture within Police Scotland.

Commending Malone’s bravery, Sturgeon said the tribunal findings “should trouble all of us” and welcomed Police Scotland’s subsequent statement pledging to act on them.

But she went on: “It’s really important that we do not assume any case like this is necessarily an isolated incident. And secondly, that we do not assume that any organisation in our society, however well respected, is somehow immune from the misogynistic culture that pervades our whole society.”

Sturgeon told MSPs there had been “too many painful reminders” in recent weeks of the spectrum of abuse that women experienced, from inappropriate comments through to discrimination in the workplace through to violence and serious sexual assault.

“I hope we are finally at a turning point where we stop expecting women to fix these problems, and we put the full glare where it belongs, on men who behave in a deeply unacceptable and misogynistic way.”

To applause from across the chamber, she concluded: “I would say to all men in this chamber and all men across the country: challenge it if it’s on the part of other men that you know, challenge your own behaviour, and then let’s collectively turn the corner so that women can live free of the fear of harassment, abuse, intimidation, violence, and in the worst cases, death.”

Her remarks come amid ongoing institutional soul-searching about how best to tackle street harassment and violence against women following the deaths of Sarah Everard, Sabina Nessa and countless others. In Scotland, Malone’s case, which concluded earlier this week, has likewise heightened concerns about sexism within the police force.

A Scottish government working group led by Helena Kennedy is considering whether misogynistic abuse should be a separate crime, and last weekend the Scottish justice secretary, Keith Brown, said he believed such a move would be a “very important signal that these behaviours are not acceptable in society from men”.

There have been calls for similar legislation in England and Wales, spearheaded by the Labour MP Stella Creasy, and in March the UK government announced it would require police forces across England and Wales to collect data on crimes apparently motivated by hostility towards women.

This week, Boris Johnson said he did not support calls to make misogyny a hate crime, saying there was “abundant” existing legislation to tackle violence against women.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
After 200,000 Orders in 2 Minutes: Xiaomi Accelerates Marketing in Europe
Ukraine Declares De Facto War on Hungary and Slovakia with Terror Drone Strikes on Their Gas Lifeline
Animated K-pop Musical ‘KPop Demon Hunters’ Becomes Netflix’s Most-Watched Original Animated Film
New York Appeals Court Voids Nearly $500 Million Civil Fraud Penalty Against Trump While Upholding Fraud Liability
Elon Musk tweeted, “Europe is dying”
Far-Right Activist Convicted of Incitement Changes Gender and Demands: "Send Me to a Women’s Prison" | The Storm in Germany
Hungary Criticizes Ukraine: "Violating Our Sovereignty"
Will this be the first country to return to negative interest rates?
Child-free hotels spark controversy
North Korea is where this 95-year-old wants to die. South Korea won’t let him go. Is this our ally or a human rights enemy?
Hong Kong Launches Regulatory Regime and Trials for HKD-Backed Stablecoins
China rehearses September 3 Victory Day parade as imagery points to ‘loyal wingman’ FH-97 family presence
Trump Called Viktor Orbán: "Why Are You Using the Veto"
Horror in the Skies: Plane Engine Exploded, Passengers Sent Farewell Messages
MSNBC Rebrands as MS NOW Amid Comcast’s Cable Spin-Off
AI in Policing: Draft One Helps Speed Up Reports but Raises Legal and Ethical Concerns
Shame in Norway: Crown Princess’s Son Accused of Four Rapes
Apple Begins Simultaneous iPhone 17 Production in India and China
A Robot to Give Birth: The Chinese Announcement That Shakes the World
Finnish MP Dies by Suicide in Parliament Building
Outrage in the Tennis World After Jannik Sinner’s Withdrawal Storm
William and Kate Are Moving House – and the New Neighbors Were Evicted
Class Action Lawsuit Against Volkswagen: Steering Wheel Switches Cause Accidents
Taylor Swift on the Way to the Super Bowl? All the Clues Stirring Up Fans
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Apple Expands Social Media Presence in China With RedNote Account Ahead of iPhone 17 Launch
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Cambridge Dictionary Adds 'Skibidi,' 'Delulu,' and 'Tradwife' Amid Surge of Online Slang
Bill Barr Testifies No Evidence Implicated Trump in Epstein Case; DOJ Set to Release Records
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
The CEO Who Replaced 80% of Employees for the AI Revolution: "I Would Do It Again"
Emails Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Character.ai Bets on Future of AI Companionship
China Ramps Up Tax Crackdown on Overseas Investments
Japanese Office Furniture Maker Expands into Bomb Shelter Market
Intel Shares Surge on Possible U.S. Government Investment
Hurricane Erin Threatens U.S. East Coast with Dangerous Surf
EU Blocks Trade Statement Over Digital Rule Dispute
EU Sends Record Aid as Spain Battles Wildfires
JPMorgan Plans New Canary Wharf Tower
Zelenskyy and his allies say they will press Trump on security guarantees
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Escalating Clashes in Serbia as Anti-Government Protests Spread Nationwide
The Drought in Britain and the Strange Request from the Government to Delete Old Emails
Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean: 'Catastrophic Storm' with Winds of 255 km/h
"No, Thanks": The Mathematical Genius Who Turned Down 1.5 Billion Dollars from Zuckerberg
The surprising hero, the ugly incident, and the criticism despite victory: "Liverpool’s defense exposed in full"
Digital Humans Move Beyond Sci-Fi: From Virtual DJs to AI Customer Agents
YouTube will start using AI to guess your age. If it’s wrong, you’ll have to prove it
×