Good Morning Britain star Susanna Reid is cleared by Ofcom after her rant about Scotland's extra World Cup bank holiday sparked 500 complaints

Published: 12:53, 7 July 2026 | Updated: 12:53, 7 July 2026 Good Morning Britain presenter Susanna Reid has been cleared by Ofcom, after her comments about Scotland's World Cup bank holiday resulted in a massive backlash amongst angry supporters.  In an episode of the ITV morning show aired on June 9, Ms Reid called the extra day granted to Scottish public sector workers 'outrageous'.  More than 500 complaints to the TV watchdog followed, resulting in an on-air apology by Ms Reid on the day of the bank holiday, June 15.  Regulator Ofcom said the complaints 'related to comments made during a discussion about the Scottish World Cup Bank Holiday'.  Ms Reid, 55, and co-presenter Ed Balls, 59, chatted about the fact Scots were given an extra day off to celebrate the national side's first World Cup match in 28 years.  Scots were given a bank holiday on Monday, June 15 - the day after the national team's 1-0 victory over Haiti which kicked off at 2am UK time. Some schools were also closed for the day.  Former MP Mr Balls said: 'This morning, in our five o'clock meeting, Susanna said, 'I can't believe this, the game's on the Sunday morning, and they get bank holiday 24 hours later'.  'I said, 'What?'. I couldn't believe it. It never occurred to me that that was going on.'  Susanna Reid (pictured) came under fire from Scottish football fans after commenting on the decision to grant the nation an extra bank holiday Scottish fans (pictured in Massachusetts on June 13) were delighted when their country beat Haiti 1-0 Ms Reid replied: 'It's really outrageous. I mean, how long does it take Scots to get over the fact that they've played their first match?'  The comments went viral on social media with angry Scots branding the discussion 'poor taste'.  Today, after reviewing the footage, the media regulator ruled the comment did not raise issues that warranted an official investigation under the Broadcasting Code. Assessors found the exchange was 'light-hearted' and cited 'freedom of expression' as a reason for not taking the matter further. Following the reaction to her comments, Ms Reid later issued an on-air apology on the day of the bank holiday - which a number of Scottish councils opted out of. She said: '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.'  An Ofcom spokesperson said: 'We carefully considered complaints about a discussion about the Scottish World Cup Bank Holiday. 'Taking into account freedom of expression, the light-hearted nature of the exchange and the range of views expressed, it did not raise potentially substantive issues under the Code warranting investigation.' In a statement following the controversy, ITV said: 'The editorial team feel discussion of the fact that some football fans would be drinking alcohol while watching the match is something that would be referenced in the discussion of any home nation's participation in an international tournament. 'No slight was intended toward Scottish fans in particular - it was more a reflection of football watching culture in the UK.' The landmark national bank holiday was proposed by First Minister John Swinney and later received the go-ahead from King Charles.