Two Scottish National Party (SNP) MPs were left red-faced after they were told Glasgow was in Scotland after they made a major social media gaffe.
Alison Thewliss and Hannah Bardell were accused of “making fools of themselves” when their social media posts backfired earlier this week.
The pair had made a series of claims about the Government moving jobs out of Scotland – only to find out that the jobs were in fact going to be rehomed in Glasgow.
The messages were posted after it was announced the Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) was moving from East Kilbride to Glasgow.
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When the decision was announced, nationalists were incensed that the office would be relocated to the country’s biggest city.
Meanwhile, HMRC is also expected to be on the move, the Scottish Daily Express announced, and find a new home in Abercrombie House.
Among the staunchest critics was Ms Bardell, the MP for Livingstone, who became so infuriated she appeared to forget Glasgow was in Scotland.
She believed that Better Together – a campaign that backed Scotland remaining in the UK during the 2014 referendum – had promised no jobs would be moving to England.
Taking to X, formerly Twitter, the politician fumed: “Awful decision, so UK Tory Gov simultaneously pulling out resources and jobs from Scotland and telling us we can’t have our own abroad.
“Aye ok, wasn’t this one of their flagship ‘Better Together’ arguments??
“Load of nonsense, Scotland will be vastly better off independent.”
And soon Ms Thewliss, the Glasgow Central MP, also made an embarrassing mistake when she ignored the economic boost the relocation of jobs to her constituency could have.
She raged: “Yet another Better Together promise evaporates – over 1,000 highly skilled civil service jobs in East Kilbride set to go as the FCDO leaves town.”
Others also chimed in, including SNP activist and failed council candidate Olaf Stando, who posted: “‘Vote No to keep the Foreign Office jobs in Scotland.’
“It was always nonsense anyway because an independent Scotland would have its own foreign office. But now this – another 2014 ‘Better Together’ campaign bites the dust.”
However, soon after the errors in their posts were made, they were deleted, with the failings in their outbursts pointed out by political opponents.
Among them was Scottish Tory MSP Murdo Fraser said: “Oh dear. Hannah doesn’t know that Glasgow is in Scotland. What on Earth has happened to the once-feared SNP spin machine? Now a laughing stock. MPs & activists making fools of themselves tonight claiming FCDO jobs are leaving Scotland, when they are moving to GLASGOW. Is this your doing @murrayf00te?”
In the aftermath, Ms Bardell claimed that she had not read the story before tweeting, describing her mistake as a “valuable lesson about tweeting when tired”.
She added: “Thanks to those kind souls who ‘politely’ pointed out my error…”
