ANAS Sarwar has been called out for a “nonsense” claim about the SNP’s strategy in the forthcoming General Election campaign.
The Scottish Labour leader claimed the SNP will turn to “dirty tricks” and said they would “spend every day and every month” attacking his party rather than the Tories.
Speaking at an event on Monday, Sarwar claimed the SNP would “prefer to inflict a Tory government on Scotland, so they get to keep their excuse for their failures and their grievance”.
However, SNP MP John Nicolson has dismissed Sarwar’s claim as “nonsense” in a post on Twitter/X.
The SNP MP for Ochil and South Perthshire said: “This is nonsense as the Scottish Labour leader knows.
“I want to see the Tories beaten & that means a minority (I hope) Labour government in the UK.
“But we need the SNP to protect Scotland & keep Labour honest. Labour’s limpet close to the Tories on way too many issues.”
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In a separate post, he added: "We all want rid of the Tories. But on welfare, taxation, immigration & asylum, tuition fees, Brexit - and most recently Gaza - Labour’s position at Westminster is limpet close to the Tories.
"And all across Scotland Labour co-operates closely with the Tories in local government."
Sarwar had said on Monday: “The Tories and the SNP who have already so degraded our politics won’t hesitate to get nasty in order to try and keep hold of power.
“So as we look ahead to the next 12 months with hope and optimism we have to expect a lot of dirty tricks and attacks from our opponents.”
He added: “The SNP are going to spend every day and every month between now and the next General Election using their energy not to defend their record, not to attack the Conservatives, but to attack the Labour Party.
“And to try and pretend that who wins the next General Election doesn’t matter. Because the truth is they don’t want change either, they don’t want a Labour government.”
Elsewhere on Monday, First Minister Humza Yousaf urged pro-independence voters to reject Anas Sarwar’s bid to secure their votes at the upcoming election.
“Scottish Labour MPs will listen to what Keir Starmer has to say,” the First Minister said.
“Michael Shanks is the perfect example, the ceasefire vote in Gaza that his own leader Anas Sarwar himself said he, and I genuinely believe he is, in favour of a ceasefire.
“Yet one of his Scottish MPs ignored him, ignored his Scottish leader and decided to do what Keir Starmer said.
“And I think he got rewarded with a frontbench post for doing so.”
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