Scottish politicians have been making their pitch to Christian voters at a national hustings for the upcoming Holyrood elections.
Two in five Christian Scots feel they are politically homeless, according to polling by Logos. The think tank held the event with representatives from seven parties on Monday, as campaigning gets underway for the 7 May vote.
The Scottish National Party (SNP) is looking to win a fifth consecutive term in government, although its support from the faith community has dropped from 35% to 13% in the past two years. Reform UK has overtaken the SNP at 14%, up from 1% in the same period.
Amid political fragmentation and concern about faith-based discrimination in politics, 42% said they “don’t know” who to back, substantially up from 16% in 2024.
More than 80% of participants in the Logos survey said they are worried about the negative reaction or criticism that Christian politicians receive, prompting candidates to defend the role of faith in public life.
Murdo Fraser, Conservative, said he was “very struck” by the media commentary around the assisted dying bill that suggested “people of faith shouldn’t be allowed to have a voice”.
He also referenced the treatment of Kate Forbes during her SNP leadership bid and deputy first minister appointment, with many pundits believing that her Christian views on abortion and same-sex marriage disqualified her from office.
Abortion was also on the agenda, after an expert report said Scotland’s laws are outdated and should scrap the need for two doctors’ approval before 24 weeks. The government says it will review the proposals while maintaining safe access.
Richard Lucas, Scottish Family Party, said the proposals were “appalling” and believes the issue was not a “grey area”, with 18,710 abortions having taken place in Scotland in 2024.
Ross Greer backed the Scottish Greens' stance in favour of decriminalisation, because the law “is exclusively being used against the handful of the most desperately vulnerable women”. He also advocated for better support for families, like affordable childcare, to be a “genuinely pro-life” society.
Reform UK’s Helen McDade defended her party’s position on faith schools, after leader Lord Offord said he was against Catholic and non-denominational institutions over fears of “sectarianism”. She said it would not be policy to abolish them, but believed it would be “a shame if people don’t know other people in their community”.
Candidates largely agreed about the need for more homes. Jenny Young, Labour, criticised the number of children in temporary accommodation, who were “waking up in a home that’s not their own”.
Eilidh Munro highlighted SNP pledges to invest £4.9 billion into housing and contribute £10,000 for first-time buyers’ deposits.
Paul McGarry, Liberal Democrat, advocated for “support, training and education” for young people, especially those who were homeless.
Shona Haslam, Logos chief executive, said it was “encouraging” to have politicians discuss the range of issues, at a time when Christians “struggle to see their values reflected in public life”.
“Although different political parties take different stances on policy issues, there is often a common Christian foundation to those policies. Love, integrity and honesty were mentioned frequently along with our desire of 'hope' for a better, fairer Scotland, grounded in values, where Christians feel able to discuss and contribute to the public square,” she added.
The Logos polling surveyed more than 1,000 Christian Scots at the end of last year for its Faith and Public Life in Scotland report.