Reform UK’s Scottish leader has shown he is “completely and utterly out of touch” with ordinary Scots – after telling viewers of the TV election debate that he owns six houses, five cars and six boats, John Swinney insisted.
The SNP leader and Scottish First Minister said Malcolm Offord’s comments, made on the STV election debate on Tuesday, showed him to be “tone deaf” to the struggles some families are facing during the cost-of-living crisis.
Lord Offord insisted he was not seeking to “boast”, as he told how he had gone to London 40 years ago “full of ambition”, adding: “I worked hard, and I was successful.
“Today, I own six houses, five cars and six boats.
“In a 40-year business career, I’ve employed hundreds of thousands of people and paid £45 million in tax.”
Commenting as he campaigned in Edinburgh on Wednesday, Mr Swinney said: “Malcolm Offord can explain for himself what on earth he thought he was setting out to people last night.”
But Mr Swinney – who said he owns one house, one car and does not have have “a yacht or any other boating craft” – told reporters: “I certainly thought it was tone deaf.
“I thought the setting of an individual’s personal wealth, at a time when people are really facing acute hardship … was an example of how completely and utterly out of touch Reform are with the reality of people’s lives.”
The SNP leader went on to claim that he recognised the “reality of the challenges people face in their lives”.
Mr Swinney said that was why his party was “bringing forward proposals that are designed to assist people in their time of need” – with these including an extension of a £2 cap on bus fares, plans to introduce a price cap on some “essential” foods, and measures to help families with childcare as well as help for first-time buyers.
Speaking about the SNP plans, Mr Swinney added: “These are practical, tangible measures that are designed to support dealing with the cost-of-living challenges.”
Claiming however that “the opposition want to stop us implementing these proposals”, he insisted that an “emphatic SNP majority” is needed in next week’s Holyrood election “to make sure we can take these forward”.
The Scottish Greens responded to the Reform UK Scottish leader’s declaration that he owns six homes with plans to bring in an “Offord tax” – which they said would “discourage a small number of super-rich individuals from hoarding so many extra homes during a housing crisis”.
At present, anyone buying a second or holiday home anywhere in Scotland must pay a tax known as the Additional Dwelling Supplement.
Scottish Greens however want to introduce a multiplier for this as part of the “Offord tax”, which would mean the rate of the levy would increase for every additional property purchased.
Scottish Green co-leader Ross Greer said: “Reform try to blame immigrants for the housing crisis, but it turns out they’re the ones causing it with their greed.”
He added: “Nobody needs six houses, and it is baffling that Lord Offord thought that it was something to boast about, along with all of his yachts and cars.
“Housing is a human right, but a small number of very rich people like Lord Offord are hoarding homes they just do not need. At the same time, thousands of people can’t get a home of their own and are being priced out of the communities they grew up in.
“The Scottish Greens’ Offord tax will help to tackle that imbalance. By making it more expensive for those who already own their own homes to hoard extra properties, we can boost the chances of first-time buyers having their offers accepted.”
