Scotland’s deputy first minister has condemned nationalists who have cancelled orders at a Perthshire bakery and have abused managers for attending an event at Downing Street.
John Swinney said it was “unacceptable” that Facebook users had sent abusive messages to Michelle Maddox after she attended the Downing Street Market, an event hosted by the prime minister on Saturday to showcase small businesses, to display her traditional clootie dumplings.
Maddox, who runs Clootie McToot in Abernethy, said in a post on Twitter: “Gosh! I have an incredibly difficult 12 hours or so on my Facebook page @ClootieMcToot. I have had private message with abuse threats and orders cancelled due to attending a non political food event at 10 Downing Street.”
Swinney urged the critics to stop. “This is totally unacceptable,” he tweeted. “Please just let @ClootieMcToot get on with running an excellent business with a fabulous product.”
Clootie dumplings are a traditional Scots dish that use a pudding cloth to steam or boil puddings in a pot of water over an open fire. The recipe is thought to have emerged in the 17th century.
Advertisement
Maddox, 46, was inspired to set up her business in a converted horse barn and hayloft in 2018 after she made the puddings using her family recipe to hand out at a stall at her son’s school fête. Lucy Noble, a Facebook user, commented: “This has just lost you a load of sales. Shame on you!” and added that Boris Johnson had the “kiss of death” for businesses. Another user, Julie Prow, said she had unliked the page after seeing the post about Maddox visiting the Downing Street event.
Maddox later called for critics to stop messaging her in a post on her company Facebook page: “Would the individuals that are sending private, abusive and threatening messages PLEASE stop now. I don’t want to have to take them further.”
Last year nationalists proposed a boycott of Baxters soup, which was developed in Fochabers, Moray, after the prime minister visited the company’s premises in Orkney. And Mackie’s of Scotland, the confectionery firm, was criticised for using a Union Jack design instead of a Saltire on the packaging of some of its chocolate bars.
