IT'S been a tough time for the Scottish Tories lately. Having a UK leader with a completely different agenda to their Holyrood boss, whose beliefs are at odds with a large number of their own voters, whose values clash with the image of modern Scottish Conservatism they've been trying to hard to put out there. Polls suggesting they'll lose a large number of their Scottish seats at the next General Election. Not ideal.
So of course learning that there has been an upswing in independence support would tip them over the edge. It's really the last thing they need right now.
READ MORE: POLL: Scots want independence and they want to vote now
But earlier today a poll commissioned by Lord Ashcroft put support for independence on 52% with undecideds excluded, the first time Yes has led in the polls since March 2017. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon called the result "phenomenal" and polling expert John Curtice said it should be taken as a "warning" for Unionists.
Scottish Tory source: "The Nats will claim they're delighted but they'll be privately disappointed with such a small bounce." https://t.co/MORwcLldLq
— Simon Johnson (@simon_telegraph) August 5, 2019
So how do you spin something that's blatantly a problem for a party with the word "Unionist" in its title? You try really, really hard. While fellow Unionists Scottish Labour cherry-picked some other results from the Lord Ashcroft poll to make it seem like Scots think Jeremy Corbyn is our lord and saviour, the Tories decided to just tell The Telegraph the SNP are "privately disappointed" with the result without providing any evidence at all.
A writer for The Telegraph tweeted: "Scottish Tory source: 'The Nats will claim they're delighted but they'll be privately disappointed with such a small bounce.'"
READ MORE: Neil Findlay tries to find a positive in independence poll
Small bounce? Okay, sure. We're only a fortnight into Boris Johnson's premiership and we've seeing Yes lead for the first time in two years. How can that possibly not be significant?
Additionally, the party now led by Brexiteers claiming that 52% is a "small bounce" worthy of disappointment is completely laughable. Do we need to remind you what the vote share was for Leave, and how that vote share is being used to justify a No-Deal Brexit? Let's just not, shall we?
We know it's been hard, but come on lads. Pull yourselves together. Dry your eyes. Time to move on.
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