Reform has said it could rerun an attack ad against Anas Sarwar that claimed he would “prioritise the Pakistani community” in Scotland.
Thomas Kerr, a senior figure in the party and one of their Holyrood candidates, said he could not rule out re-airing the ad which was branded “racist” by Scottish Labour leader Mr Sarwar and First Minister John Swinney.
The former Tory councillor spoke to reporters at a press conference alongside Reform UK Scotland leader Lord Malcolm Offord in Glasgow’s east end.
The pair posed in front of two vans that showed pictures of migrants, all non-white, on a boat with large red writing above that read: “Scotland is at breaking point.”
Smaller words below the picture said: “Glasgow has become the illegal migrant capital of the UK. Only Reform Scotland will stop this.”
During the press conference, at Tollcross international swimming centre, Lord Offord said a Reform Scottish government would use Holyrood’s powers to clamp down on migration, which is reserved, through areas including housing policy, which are devolved.
During the event, the party was asked whether it would rerun its attack against the Scottish Labour leader, who was born in Glasgow to Pakistani parents, that was first used in the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election in 2025.
Mr Kerr said he could not rule it out, telling reporters: “This is a man who is hoping to be first minister at Holyrood for all of Scotland and I think it’s right that he is held accountable for statements he has made.
“The sort of campaign that Reform will run is one to make sure that this man [Mr Offord] sitting next to me is in Bute House.
“We’re not interested in second place, we’re not interested in propping up Anas Sarwar or John Swinney, we want to make sure that this guy sitting next to me wins and is in Bute House to get the real fundamental change this country needs.”
Pressed again whether Reform could re-use the video, Mr Kerr said: “I am not going to rule out using Anas Sarwar’s words against him because Anas Sarwar is a grown-up politician who deserves to be scrutinised like anyone else in this country.
“He is hoping to be first minister. Every single statement that man has made should be under massive amounts of scrutiny.
“That’s what we’ve done in Hamilton and that’s what we’ll continue to do in this campaign.”
The ad – which Reform spent thousands on to be shown on Facebook and Instagram – shows clips of Mr Sarwar calling for more representation of Scots with south Asian heritage, although he did not say he would prioritise any one group, with superimposed words claiming he would prioritise Pakistani people.
Nigel Farage has previously doubled down on the ad, playing it at an event in London last year and accusing Mr Sarwar of having “introduced sectarianism into Scottish politics”.
Lord Offord, who Mr Farage appointed as Scottish leader earlier this year, ruled out any deal with Scottish Labour.
“We couldn’t work with Labour because they don’t share our view on economic growth,” he said.
“Anas says words that I sometimes recognise like economic growth and getting rid of quangos, etc, but then I look at what’s actually happened in London in the last two years, where a whole series of measures by Labour has killed our economic growth.
“So, we could just not find any accommodation in that regard.”
Mr Sarwar has previously ruled out any deal with Reform to become first minister.
Holyrood’s proportional voting system makes it unlikely that any party can win a majority, meaning leaders often have to rely on the votes of other MSPs to form the Government.
Dame Jackie Baillie, deputy leader of Scottish Labour, said Reform looked “more desperate by the day” and that it was “no wonder after the shambolic start to their campaign”.
She added: “These comments are a reminder of why Scottish Labour will never do any deal or coalition with Reform – despite the SNP’s grubby and dishonest campaign.
“While Reform and the SNP are distracted by their own chaos and their own fringe obsessions, Scottish Labour is focused on getting the basics right and delivering for Scotland.
“On May 7 only Scottish Labour can turn the page on SNP failure and fix the mess they have made of our NHS, our education system and our economy.”
Jamie Greene, Lib Dem candidate for Inverclyde, said: “Racism is racism, no matter how hard you try to spin it, and the good people of Scotland are better than this nonsense politics.
“I’m sure there are many sensible people out there considering voting Reform who are doing so because they are frustrated with the way that the SNP, Conservatives and Labour have let them down over the years.
“But I would urge them to consider how weird and childish all Reform’s politicians seem to be.
“There is another way. Back the Scottish Liberal Democrats on your peach regional ballot and get an MSP focused on the issues that matter, not being a wind-up merchant.”
