THE SCOTTISH Family Party has been criticised for making a joke on social media comparing abortion services in Scotland to The Holocaust.

The ‘Christian’ political group - previously branded far right by an anti-fascist organisation - tweeted a number of activists on social media with a picture of Nicola Sturgeon outside Auschwitz, with a cartoon-like thought bubble reading: “There should have been a buffer zone around this place.”

The party has posted the picture dozens of times. 

Green MSP Gillian Mackay, who has been leading the campaign for buffer zones around clinics targeted by anti-abortion protesters, described the meme as “crass, insensitive and shameful”.

She said: “The Scottish Family Party are a disgraceful and extreme party that has been rejected time and again by the people of Scotland. Even by their standards, this is appalling.

“If they have any decency they will remove it now and reconsider the messages they send and the content they share."

Carol Mochan, Labour MSP for South Scotland, was sent one of the images on Twitter. 

She branded it "deeply offensive and stupid", adding: "You should be ashamed."

Her colleague, Monica Lennon, said anti-abortion campaigners had been “emboldened by the hesitancy of SNP ministers to take action against clinic harassment.” 

An SNP spokesperson said: "This comparison is disgusting, harmful and deeply offensive.

"Access to abortion is a human right, and women should be able to do so free of harassment and intimidation." 

David Baddiel, the comedian and writer, who has campaigned against anti-Semitism, described the tweet as "tiresome".

H said: “Of the many things social media has encouraged, reaching - reflexively, unthinkingly and with zero historical understanding - for The Holocaust as an instant comparison for your issue is maybe the most tiresome."

The Scottish Family Party was founded in 2017. It is very much on the fringes of Scottish politics, winning just 2,734 constituency votes and 16,085 regional list votes at last year's election. 

They have often courted controversy. Party leader Richard Lucas - who founded the party after leaving Ukip - has previously compared gay marriage to incest.

They have also opposed the NHS giving fertility treatments to anyone other than heterosexual couples.

In their annual State of Hate report, the anti-fascism organisation, Hope Not Hate, profiled the Scottish Family Party in a section on far-right groups in the UK.