Dame Jackie Baillie MSP, Tory Leader Russell Findlay and Liz Truss.
By Bill Heaney
Dumbarton MSP Jackie Baillie has accused Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay of having “a brass neck”.
Commenting ahead of Findlay’s speech at Conservative Party conference, Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie MSP said: “It takes some brass neck for Russell Findlay to preach about fiscal responsibility when he backed Liz Truss – someone who was outlasted by a lettuce.
“In his glowing video endorsement of her, still available online, he claimed that Liz Truss ‘cannot be ignored’, although it does seem that that is exactly what he is now trying to do.
“Scotland’s economy has stagnated under the SNP – but the UK economy was also plunged into turmoil during 14 years of a rotten Tory government.
“The reality is that neither the SNP or the Tories have any economic achievements to boast about, with both parties leaving our country worse off, and now battling it out to see who can best shift the blame rather than taking any responsibility for their own failings.
“That’s why Scottish Labour and Anas Sarwar will give Scots the chance to take a new direction at the Holyrood election next year – finally turning the page after years of dismal government under both the SNP and Conservatives.”
Meanwhile, Theresa May has hit out at Kemi Badenoch’s plan to rip up the UK’s climate plans warning it would be a “catastrophic mistake”.
Shortly before resigning as PM in 2019, Ms May increased the ambition of the Act to cutting greenhouse gases to zero overall, known as “net zero”, by 2050.
“To row back now would be a catastrophic mistake for while that consensus is being tested, the science remains the same.”
Ms May, who said the UK has led the way in tackling climate change, added: “The harms are undeniable. We owe it to our children and grandchildren to ensure we protect the planet for their futures and that means giving business the reassurance it needs to find the solutions for the very grave challenges we face.”
On Thursday the ex-Tory Cabinet minister Alok Sharma, a former Cop26 President, also warned the plan risks future investment and jobs in the UK.
He said: “The path to a prosperous, secure and electable future for the Conservative Party lies in building on our achievements, not abandoning them.”
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