Edinburgh City Council leader resigns over allegations of sexual harassment towards Ukrainian refugees

Cammy Day, leader of the Edinburgh City Council, has announced his resignation after police opened an investigation into him on charges of inappropriate behaviour towards refugees from Ukraine.

Source: European Pravda, citing the BBC

Details: In a statement published on Monday, 9 December, Day said that recent reports about his personal life are "detracting from the important work this Labour-led council does for the people of Edinburgh".

"That's why it's time for me to step aside as leader," he added, pledging to cooperate with law enforcement in their investigation.

The UK Labour Party also reported that it had suspended the man's membership until the investigation was completed. The Edinburgh City Council will now have to elect a new leader next Thursday, 19 December.

Cammy Day has served as a councillor in Edinburgh since 2008 and has led the city council as a representative of the minority Labour Party since 2022.

Over the weekend, Scottish tabloids reported that an investigation had been launched against the politician over reports of inappropriate behaviour towards Ukrainian women who fled the full-scale Russian invasion.

Articles by these tabloids claimed that Day had asked the women "sexually explicit questions" and invited them to meet him over a glass of wine.

Police Scotland later confirmed that it was investigating a complaint of misconduct made on 22 October but refused to disclose details.

The Ukrainian Consulate in Edinburgh also expressed concern over the reports and said it "looks forward to the outcome of the investigation and hopes for a fair resolution of this case".

Background: In April 2024, the Hamburg Land Court sentenced a 42-year-old official to eight years in prison for sexually harassing Ukrainian boys aged 9 and 11 and producing child pornography.

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