Humza Yousaf has been left red-faced after the SNP’s longest-serving MP disowned his “Tory free” general election slogan.
The Scottish First Minister used the phrase multiple times as he addressed SNP activists on Saturday and told Scottish Tory MPs: “The SNP is coming for you.”
But Pete Wishart, the party’s Perth and North Perthshire MP since 2001, said he would not be using the same messaging.
He wrote in a post on X: “Much as I will be doing everything possible to ensure that the Tories are kept out of Perth and Kinross-shire I won’t be using this ‘Tory-free’ rhetoric as part of my campaign.”
However, the Scottish Conservatives pointed out Mr Wishart had already used the phrase in a post on X just over a week ago.
Scottish Tory MSP Murdo Fraser said the First Minister’s “divisive rhetoric” was an “insult to the hundreds of thousands of people who vote Scottish Conservative”.
He said: “He also knows it’s not going to happen – in fact we’re aiming to make gains from the SNP at the general election.
“It’s interesting that the SNP’s longest-serving MP is now disowning his leader’s ugly rhetoric.
“But it’s only been eight days since Pete Wishart trotted it out himself – so he has no credibility posing as a man of integrity.”
Scottish Conservative MSP Stephen Kerr suggested the message may amount to a hate crime.
He said: “I certainly feel that the language used by Humza and the SNP ‘Tory free Scotland, not just the MPs, but the ideas and values’ could constitute a hate crime under the definition police have been given.
“The SNP have had enough dealings with the police last year already…”
An SNP spokesperson said: “Most seats across Scotland are a straight fight between the SNP and the Tories.
“From the Highlands to the Borders, vote SNP to rid this country of Tory MPs once and for all.”
