Q Manivannan, a transgender non-binary immigrant newly elected to the Scottish Parliament for the Scottish Greens on the Edinburgh and Lothians East regional list, has sparked controversy over the fact that he does not hold permanent residency in the United Kingdom.
According to multiple reports, Manivannan—originally from Tamil Nadu in India and publicly identifying as ‘a transgender Tamil immigrant’—arrived in Scotland in 2021 on a student visa while studying at the University of St Andrews. This has fuelled speculation over whether he possesses the legal status required both to stand for election and to work as an MSP (Member of the Scottish Parliament).
Several outlets and political commentators claimed that Manivannan ‘does not have the right to work in the UK’, although the precise legal situation remains disputed. The Scottish Greens themselves initially acknowledged that Manivannan’s immigration status could create complications during the parliamentary term.
However, the party later backtracked from that statement and insisted that Manivannan currently holds a valid visa permitting him to live and work in Scotland, arguing that election law allows certain Commonwealth citizens to stand for office even without permanent residency.
The Scottish election law was amended by the Scottish National Party (SNP) in 2025 precisely to permit individuals without permanent residency in the UK to become MSPs.
‘Manivannan may be a nice young person. But I don’t want to live in a country where people on student visas can become elected representatives to national parliaments,’ said Robert Jenrick, former Conservative minister and now shadow chancellor of Reform UK.
Dr Manivannan may be a nice young person.
— Robert Jenrick (@RobertJenrick) May 9, 2026
But I don’t want to live in a country where people on student visas can become elected representatives to national parliaments.
He’s crowdfunding from Green Party members for his graduate visa for pete’s sake. https://t.co/dj5lc0Ht9Y
Manivannan’s election has also generated controversy because, as an MSP, he will receive a taxpayer-funded salary estimated at roughly £77,000–£80,000 annually despite not holding permanent immigration status.
The incoming Green MSP has also faced backlash over several past comments, including social media posts accused of antisemitic rhetoric and support for the decriminalization of prostitution.
‘The reason he should not be in Parliament has nothing to do with where he came from. It is because he was happy to have unfollowed the Auschwitz Museum and to boast about the idea of vandalising hostage posters for the October 7 attacks,’ Reform UK’s Scottish deputy leader Thomas Kerr stated.
Q Manivannan, trans gender Indian migrant and now Green MSP, advocates for more prostitution in Scotland. pic.twitter.com/Ax0LFwSQc6
— 'New Scots' Profiles (@NewScotProfiles) May 10, 2026
The 2026 UK elections triggered a political earthquake across Britain, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour Party suffering devastating losses in Wales and local elections in England, while Nigel Farage’s Reform UK achieved historic breakthroughs.
In Wales, Labour collapsed from 30 seats to a projected nine in the expanded 96-seat Senedd, losing its decades-long dominance, while Plaid Cymru emerged as the largest party, and Reform surged to a projected 34 seats.
In England, Reform gained more than 1,400 local council seats, while Labour lost roughly the same number and the Conservatives suffered further heavy losses. In Scotland, the SNP retained power as a minority government with 58 seats, but Reform exceeded expectations by winning 17 seats in the Scottish Parliament, tying with Labour and marking the party’s first major breakthrough at Holyrood.
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