TWO of Holyrood’s most senior spin doctors are heading for pastures new.
Fergus Mutch, the SNP’s head of communications and research is leaving his job with the party after four years.
While Tory MSP Eddie Barnes, the Scottish Tories’ director of communications is also moving on.
The former political editor of the Scotsman had worked closely with former leader Ruth Davidson and had played a key part in the party’s last Holyrood campaign, where they leapfrogged Labour to become Holyrood’s second-largest party.
Neither of the men have revealed where they’re off to. Mutch came very close to winning a Westminster seat in last month’s election.
He was the SNP’s candidate in West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine where he reduced the majority of Tory MP Andrew Bowie from 7950 to just 843.
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Taking to Twitter, Barnes wrote: “I’m off, and thanks for all good wishes. Rumours that Fergus and I are doing a job swap are, however, untrue.”
Mutch used the social media site to encourage people to apply for his old job.
“After four years working for the SNP at Holyrood I’ve decided it’s time for a new challenge.
“If you fancy being the new me, there’s a cracking job going in the most successful election-winning press office in the country.”
On Monday it was revealed that Jackson Carlaw had hired a public relations firm to help with his campaign in the Scottish Tory leadership contest.
He has appointed Halogen Communications to provide PR support during his campaign.
The firm is based in Edinburgh but also has an office in Washington DC.
Its clients include household names such as Morrisons, Airbnb and tobacco giant Philip Morris, while its founding partners are former Tory MP and Scotland Office minister Raymond Robertson and Scottish Tory staffer John Crawford.
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