Cameron Downing

Cameron Downing, a violent male who identifies as non-binary, was convicted at the High Court in Edinburgh in June 2024 of sexually assaulting six young adults. Judge Stirling imposed an extended sentence of 9 years on Downing after he was convicted of 10 charges including assault, sexual assault and domestic abuse. The sentence comprises a custodial term of six years and a 3-year extension period in the community.

Following conviction, it emerged that Downing – a prolific sexual predator – had accessed services at Edinburgh Rape Crisis (ERCC), saying in a video posted online in January 2022 (i.e. after Downing had been arrested) that ERCC was the reason he was “able to keep going” and that he “cannot put into words how much they’ve helped me.” At the time the centre maintained that it offered services only for women but was effectively mixed sex, as it allowed biological males who said they identified as female or non-binary under an “inclusion” policy introduced by Mridul Wadhwa, a male who identifies as a transgender woman. Commenting on the leadership of ERCC, JK Rowling said “That a male sexual predator was able to access the services of the Edinburgh Rape Crisis Centre should beggar belief, but, of course, it doesn’t. ERCC is still run by the trans-identified male who believes women who want single-sex services are bigots.” Wadhwa was eventually suspended after conducting a Kafkaesque ‘heresy hunt’ against a female counsellor who advocated for female-only space. See this article for further info. See also Lennon/Katie Dolatowski, a trans-identified male sex offender who was able to access Women’s Aid services in Leeds under similar inclusion policies.

Downing, aged 24, was an activist and office holder for the Scottish National Party (SNP) and was found to have preyed on victims across Scotland in a course of conduct that began when he was 16 years old. The abuse perpetrated by Downing included repeatedly blackmailing one man by threatening to make rape allegations against him to the police if the victim refused sexual contact with him. The victim told the court Downing had threatened to ruin his life by telling the man’s friends, family and employer that he was a rapist. See here for other examples of trans-identified male offenders who have made false rape allegations.

Downing also verbally abused a female victim so badly about her weight that she became drunk and sick at a party. He persuaded her to get undressed and shower, and she then woke up with bruises she believed he caused. In an interview with the Daily Record, a female victim who knew him from school told how Downing stripped her naked, threw her in a burning hot shower and emptied a bin full of sanitary towels over her. She also said Downing had boasted of his close friendship with Nicola Sturgeon and that after seeing coverage of him being elected to positions of trust within the party, she contacted the SNP, including Karen Adam directly, to tell them Downing was facing a litany of sexual assault and abuse charges against her and others, but they were only interested in whether the attacks happened at party events. Downing would apparently push boundaries from a young age but then excuse it as him being gay and say it didn’t count. He later sexually assaulted the young woman in a nightclub.

Details of risk assessments specific to sexual offending were included in the judge’s sentencing statements and reveal that Downing scored in areas including hostility towards women, lack of concern for others, sexual preoccupation and deviant sexual preference. Downing was therefore assessed as being at a high risk of sexual reoffending. The risk assessments also revealed a high likelihood of causing serious harm, both sexual and violent, as well as controlling behaviour within the context of intimate relationships. The likelihood of reoffending was described as not exclusive to men that Downing is in an intimate relationship with, but also includes adult women known to him.

*Downing’s tweet from 2020 threatening violence against women he disagrees with*

In fact, Downing’ antipathy and aggression towards women had been blindingly obvious in his behaviour towards feminists trying to discuss the impact of gender ideology on women’s rights. For example, in 2020 he tweeted “I’m in the mood to beat the fuck out of some terfs” (TERF is a slur used to justify violent threats against feminists). Reduxx reported in 2022 that this kind of violent rhetoric was no bar to Downing being elected as – unbelievably – the Equalities Officer for the SNP’s London Branch and as the Media and Communications Officer for the party’s official LGBTQ group, where he previously served as the “Gender Identity and Expression Officer”. See here for further examples of trans individuals who have been installed as equality officers and who then later perpetrate (or are suspected to have perpetrated) violent crimes.

The author JK Rowling highlighted Downing as the latest example of SNP misogyny in October 2022 when she tweeted: “Nicola Sturgeon’s Scotland: A place where an equalities officer feels free to declare in public how much he wants to beat up non-compliant women”. In fact, not only had Downing been pictured with the then First Minister, but photos also emerged of Downing attending a Pride parade in June 2022 with another SNP politician, Karen Adam MSP (convenor of Holyrood’s equalities committee), and Josh Mennie, Head of Public Affairs at the Scottish Parliament and a proud invader of women’s toilets. Adam was again seen with Downing and also former SNP MP Alyn “Back Gender Reform, or leave the SNP” Smith at an event the following month. Many other SNP pals of Downing have kept their heads down since he was charged and later convicted, as detailed here by Wings Over Scotland. Downing also wasn’t sacked from his SNP role – let alone expelled from the party – after the abusive tweets were highlighted, and instead voluntarily resigned three months later. Fergus Ewing, the ex-Scottish rural affairs secretary, has accused SNP party leaders of ignoring red flags over Cameron Downing and demanded an enquiry.

*Image of Kirsten Oswald, MP & Kaukab Stewart, MSP via The Herald*

Unfortunately, Downing joins several other appalling men within the SNP who have been investigated (and some later convicted) for sexual impropriety, including Mark Kerr, Jordan Linden, Lewis Ritchie, Derek Mackay, Mark McDonald, Nathan Sparling and Patrick Grady, plus Michael Cullen who was declared unfit for trial after being prosecuted for making false sexual assault allegations. Nor is there any shortage of examples of male SNP members’ misogyny and animosity towards feminists including Grant Karte, an SNP member who was convicted in 2021 of sending threats to the Scottish feminist MP and barrister Joanna Cherry; Alexandria Adamson, a trans-identified male disability officer who was suspended from the SNP after making assassination threats to politicians he disagreed with and video emerged of him screaming “WITCH! WITCH WITCH!” at feminists; and Gregor Murray – a male trans/non binary (now ex) SNP councillor in Dundee who was suspended for being “highly offensive and inappropriate” to members of the public on social media, including calling women he disagreed with terfs and c**ts. And who could forget the infamous 2023 photo of SNP MP Kirsten Oswald and SNP MSP Kaukab Stewart posing with trans activists in Glasgow who are holding a sign that depicts a guillotine and reads “decapitate TERFS”? At least they had the sense to later condemn such violent rhetoric.