Douglas Ross has been ridiculed for championing the Tories as the “party of working Scotland” while defending benefit cuts for the poorest families in the country.
The Scottish Conservative leader used an appearance at the fringe of the Tory conference in Manchester to claim Nicola Sturgeon’s focus on independence was detached from the reality of ordinary people’s lives.
But Ross was branded “desperate” by political opponents as he sought to champion the Tories as defenders of the poor while cutting Universal Credit by £20 a week.
Ross insisted the Scottish government could step in with devolved benefit payments as the Tories replaced Universal Credit with hardship support.
He said: “£41 million will go to Scotland, and Nicola Sturgeon didn’t explain at all this week how that will be delivered to the most vulnerable in Scotland.”
“So I’d like to hear more about using the powers and funding we have in Scotland to deliver that money. And crucially, on the Universal Credit uplift, if the SNP are so sure that this is not the right approach to take - use of the powers they have at the movement.”
Ross accused Sturgeon of turning the Scottish Government into a “subsidy of Yes Scotland” and claimed the government was a “constitutional campaign group on stilts” focused on independence above all else.
He also highlighted Scotland’s drug deaths crisis, which he claimed would be Sturgeon’s “legacy”.
He said: “An independence referendum won’t add another day of good health to anyone’s life.
“While they talk, we will act. That’s why we’re introducing a Right to Recovery Bill, to tackle the drugs scandal that will be Nicola Sturgeon’s legacy.
Ross also said the party, which has 31 MSPs, would also bring forward “Mackay’s Law”, which would change rules so MSPs who do not attend Holyrood for six months are forced to stand down.
Former SNP finance secretary Derek Mackay, who resigned from government after the Scottish Sun revealed he was messaging a teenage boy, was paid £100,000 while “hiding at home” and not in parliament, Ross said.
He added: “In no other job could someone pocket a six-figure salary while hiding at home. So why would we stand for it in the Scottish Parliament?”
Ross added that his party will also introduce a “Local Government Powers and Protection Bill” to put more power in the hands of councils.
He said: “It’s not good enough to stop an SNP majority. We have to stop nationalism for good. Scottish Labour are a party of the past."
Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie branded Ross’s speech “desperate” and said: “It would be amusing were it not so detached from reality”.
She added: “The idea that the Scottish Conservatives are the champions of working people, at a time when they are set to give the green light to the devastating cut to Universal Credit, is simply deluded.”
SNP MSP Neil Gray said: “Douglas Ross is desperately trying to be relevant but his Tory bosses in London have relegated him to speaking at a fringe event.
“While the First Minister and SNP government are focused on navigating through this pandemic and working to protect people’s livelihoods, Douglas Ross and the Scottish Tories continue to fall into line behind Boris Johnson to impose devastating policies that will push people into hardship and poverty.”
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