Good Morning Britain has received hundreds of Ofcom complaints over comments Susanna Reid made about Scotland’s bank holiday for their first World Cup game.
Scottish fans were granted a bank holiday last Monday, after staying up to watch their country’s clash with Haiti, which kicked off at 2am given the time difference to the stadium in Boston.
The match was Scotland’s first World Cup game in 28 years, but given the whistle would blow at around 4am, many fans tuning in would have had to miss the match or likely been wrecked for work the following day.
As a result, tens of thousands of public sector workers got the day off on Monday to mark the occasion. Certain schools were also closed for the day.
The bank holiday no doubt went down well with Scots, but Reid dubbed it ‘outrageous’ on the ITV morning news programme, after they had clinched a 1-0 victory over Haiti.
She said: ‘It’s really outrageous. I mean, how long does it take Scots to get over the fact that they’ve played their first match?’
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The 55-year-old did sense that she might have raised hackles with the comments, adding: ‘My Scottish ancestors would be turning in their graves, I can only apologise.
‘Let me say, it’s outrageous that not everyone in Scotland has got today off as a bank holiday.’
The comments have reportedly attracted 508 Ofcom complaints, with the watchdog confirming they were related to the Scottish World Cup’s bank holiday discussion.
Just weeks after Scotland qualified for the North American tournament, First Minister John Swinney said the day after Scotland’s first game should be designated as a national bank holiday.
The First Minister said: ‘We want to make the most of Scotland’s participation in this global sporting event by ensuring people have the opportunity to come together and celebrate – no matter the outcome of the match.
‘That is why I proposed making the Monday following our opening game in Boston a national bank holiday.’
The landmark national bank holiday subsequently got the go-ahead from King Charles, but it was left to businesses to decide whether staff should have the day off.
Metro contacted GMB for comment on this story.
Good Morning Britain airs on ITV on weekdays from 6am.