DOUGLAS Ross has defended a Tory council candidate who started a petition saying refugees should not be let into the UK.

Speaking at a campaign event in Clarkston on Friday, the party leader said Judy Lockhart-Hunter, who is standing in the North Berwick Coastal ward of East Lothian, now had “completely different” opinions on the matter and was making up for her “mistake”.

He also claimed the poll – launched in 2015 during the Syrian refugee crisis - had been removed “for some time” but The National can confirm it has not been fully deleted and was still open until earlier this week when we approached Lockhart-Hunter directly.

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The petition intended for former Prime Minister David Cameron displayed a large image of a Union flag with the slogan “Veterans Before Migrants” and a blurb stating how refugees “would be far better placed going to another Islamic country where they can fit in easier”.

When asked if he knew about the petition before being approached about it this week, Ross said he didn’t but then appeared to contradict himself by saying he thought it had been deleted.

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Lockhart-Hunter also speculated that some refugees could be dangerous as she suggested Daesh intended to send soldiers to the west posing as asylum seekers. She insisted the UK should be “safeguarding government money for those who pay into the system”.

When asked how Lockhart-Hunter’s stance fit in with Scottish Tory policy on refugees, Ross told The National it didn’t but insisted she was still a worthy candidate.

“It doesn’t at all [fit with Scottish Tory policy in refugees] and Judy has apologised for that,” he said.

“It’s completely the wrong wording and language and the wrong sentiment to be making. It was a statement she made a number of years ago that she’s deeply regretful for making.”

He added: “My understanding was it [the petition] had been deleted but a screenshot had been taken of it so I didn’t know anything about it until the request for a comment came in.”

Lockhart-Hunter has now apparently offered to support a Ukrainian refugee family through the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

Ross said: “She’s offered to take in a Ukrainian refugee family now so her opinions are completely different to that petition she launched when she was much younger and it has been removed for some time.

“People make mistakes when they are younger and make up for that and she’s absolutely doing that now and it’s clear people across Scotland want to do everything they can to support the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

The National:

“We know there’s been a massive uptake in terms of people looking to support Ukrainian families and to help people fleeing that conflict in Ukraine. Many don’t want to come here because they want to stay close to Ukraine to get back there as quickly as possible, but for those who do, it’s been really encouraging to see how many families have been willing to come forward to support those Ukrainians who are fleeing the country.”

Ross visited Clarkston’s Overlee Playing Fields on Friday with an oversized mock ballot paper and envelope as props as postal ballots began dropping through letterboxes this week.

The fake ballot paper displayed the words “How to use your vote to beat the SNP” with a number one next to Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party and the other options “SNP victory” and “SNP/Labour coalition” left blank.