FRANTIC Tory politicians have moved to try and rewrite the Prime Minister’s claim that devolution was a disaster.

Last night, the Prime Minister told a group of Tory MPs that devolution had been "a disaster north of the Border" and called it "Tony Blair's biggest mistake".

The remark sparked fury both from political opponents and, privately, many members of his own party. 

One Scottish Tory source described the comments as "moronic".

Publicly the Scottish Tories were notably absent from the airwaves this morning, with Douglas Ross and Alister Jack both unavailable for interview on the BBC's Good Morning Scotland.

READ MORE: Scottish independence: 'Union is dead', says former Tory media chief

It was left to former Tory secretary of state for Scotland, Malcolm Rifkind, to try and defend the Prime Minister. 

He insisted that when Johnson said devolution, he really meant the SNP. 

The Tory told the BBC’s Today programme: “I'm afraid this is rather typical of the loose language that Boris Johnson occasionally uses. I suspect there are two things he was almost certainly meaning to say.

"He was quoted saying it was 'Tony Blair's disaster' and of course, from the point of view of the Labour Party in Scotland it was a total disaster.

"The creation of the Scottish assembly was meant to lead to the end of the SNP and the end of nationalism. It actually led to the end of the Labour Party in Scotland who are now behind the Tories, which in my days would have been inconceivable."

He added: "The other point, a more fundamental point for what's happening at the moment, is that the way the SNP who control the Scottish Parliament is operating is they're being pretty useless when it comes to Scottish education and domestic issues.

"They've been obsessed with the demands for referendums and keep having referendums.

"Neverendums until they hopefully win independence.”

Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick also denied that Boris Johnson regards Scottish devolution as a "disaster".

READ MORE: Boris Johnson slammed for claim devolution is 'disaster north of Border'

Despite it being literally what the Prime Minister had said, he told Sky News: "That is not what the Prime Minister was saying.” 

He added: "The Prime Minister has always supported devolution but he is at heart a unionist and he is very troubled by the rise of nationalism and separatism.

"Whilst in some parts of the United Kingdom devolution has enabled local people to have greater say over their own destinies, one of the downsides in Scotland has been that it has been misused by the SNP to drive a wedge between those who want to be part of the same country with hundreds of years of history and friendship.

"The PM is very concerned about that. The disaster the Prime Minister is referring to is the rise of separatism and nationalism in the form of the SNP."

The National:

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon seized on comments, first reported by the Sun, she tweeted: "Worth bookmarking these PM comments for the next time Tories say they're not a threat to the powers of the Scottish Parliament - or, even more incredibly, that they support devolving more powers.

"The only way to protect and strengthen the Scottish Parliament is with independence."

On the BBC's Good Morning Scotland Scottish Tory councillor Andrew Polson said: "Devolution has been a success and the Prime Minister definitely agrees with that."

On Monday night, Douglas Ross insisted that "devolution has not been a disaster".

He tweeted: "The SNP's non-stop obsession with another referendum - above jobs, schools and everything else - has been a disaster."

Labour’s shadow Scottish secretary Ian Murray criticised Johnson as he defended devolution as "one of Labour's proudest achievements".

"This confirms that Boris Johnson doesn't believe in devolution and would put the future of the United Kingdom at risk," the Labour MP said.