THE Scottish Tories are being urged to apologise for a "despicable" attack on comedian Janey Godley while she's being treated for stage-three ovarian cancer.
The party launched the attack on social media after it emerged that Nicola Sturgeon had been told the comedian was seen as being "on side of the political debate", but was still approved to be the face of a public health campaign.
The comedian was later dropped from the Covid ads after controversial tweets resurfaced - she has apologised unreservedly for the posts.
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The Conservatives jumped on the news, and on Thursday tweeted: "The First Minister chose to make her nationalist friend the face of a crucial public health campaign despite admitting she was seen as a partisan political figure.
“When will @NicolaSturgeon apologise for this irresponsible decision?”
The tweet was then liked or retweeted by a host of prominent Scottish Tories including Miles Briggs, Alexander Burnett, Douglas Lumsden, Russell Findlay and Meghan Gallacher.
Gallacher, MSP for the Central Scotland region, retweeted it with three laughing emojis attached.
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Some of the senior Tory MSPs have subsequently deleted their retweets but the original attack from the official party account was still available online this morning.
SNP MSP James Dornan said the post was a "new low" for the Tories, given Godley's health.
He went on: “If Douglas Ross has a shred of decency he would be publicly apologising for this deeply insensitive attack and for causing additional distress to a seriously ill woman.
“Ross must explain if he authorised such an obviously despicable campaign, order that the offensive post be deleted and discipline every one of his team who promoted or liked it.
“The Tory frontbench really has no shame. Russell Findlay, who is being promoted as the face of Ross’s party, describes himself as shadow community safety minister and justice committee deputy convener. What part of safety or justice is he promoting with vile tweets like this?
“And Meghan Gallacher should explain why she considered the offensive tweet worthy of three laughing emojis. She is supposed to be a spokesperson on children and young people. What sort of example does she think this sets to them?
“Douglas Ross has tried to distance himself from his Westminster colleagues – and the nastiness of Boris Johnson’s vile Jimmy Savile smears – but this grossly insensitive attack on a seriously ill woman demonstrates the Scottish Tories are cut from the same nasty cloth. There is not a gutter to which they will not descend.
“There is no place in Scotland’s political discourse for the weaponizing of anyone’s illness in an offensive and misguided attempt to score political points. The behaviour of all those senior Tories is shameful and they should all apologise individually.”
The Scottish Conservatives have been contacted for comment.
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