AN SNP MP was jeered in the Commons after he claimed there was an “alignment of Labour and Reform”.
The moment came after Stephen Gethins, the MP Arbroath and Broughty Ferry, questioned Scottish Secretary Douglas Alexander on why Scots are facing energy bills which are among the highest in Europe.
Speaking at Scottish Questions at Westminster on Wednesday, Gethins said: “The Secretary of State will be aware that Scotland is energy rich, an exporter of electricity and energy, hydrocarbons and renewables.
“So why are so many Scots struggling to pay amongst the highest bills in Europe?”
Alexander responded: “The economic illiteracy is not limited to the benches of the House of Commons, but extends to the First Minister.
“Let's take the example of Berwick Bank, the largest offshore wind farm in Europe, paid for in no small measure due to the actions of the UK Government.
“The fact is, when the First Minister and the honourable gentleman make their claims that somehow the affordability of renewables is determined by the Scottish taxpayer, they ignore the contribution being paid by UK billpayers.
“The reality is the level of investment we've seen in renewables in Scotland is a direct consequence of being part of the UK energy market.”
Responding, Gethins said: “Right there, we're seeing the alignment of Labour and Reform.”
Amid jeers, he went on: “Because it's Labour's Brexit isolationism that's taken us away from Europe, away from our key markets.
“So why is it that independent Ireland, European Ireland, has announced £700 million in support package, yet a Scotland that has given £350 billion to the Treasury, yet in heating oil sport got £35 per household. So what is it?
“As the fuel crisis spirals, we see little or no action from the Labour government. Will they turn their back on this alignment and towards the taxpayer?”
The Scottish Secretary accused Gethins – who is the SNP’s candidate in Dundee City East in the Holyrood elections – of “talking up Reform”.
“When will the SNP learn that you can be anti-nationalist and not anti-Scottish?” Alexander said.
“The reality is that this was the party that promised a publicly owned energy company almost a decade ago. Maybe when he next gets on his feet, he can tell us where did that energy company ever go?”
Speaking after the exchange, Gethins said there was “a straightforward question that has dominated the Scottish election campaign that the Labour Party has no answers to – why do people in energy rich Scotland face some of the highest energy bills in Europe?”
“Douglas Alexander had precisely zero explanation for that injustice and it’s exactly why more and more people are concluding that Scotland needs a fresh start with independence,” he added.
"To make matters worse, Labour, Reform and the Tories are completely aligned on Brexit that is hammering families the length and breadth of Scotland.
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“If Keir Starmer won’t act as the cost of living crisis becomes a cost of living emergency then he should hand over the powers to an SNP Scottish Government that will.”
The exchange came amid a row over whether Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar approached Reform UK to make a deal in order to keep the SNP out of government in Scotland .
Malcolm Offord, Reform's Scottish leader, claimed on a Channel 4 debate on Tuesday evening that Sarwar had done so, though the Scottish Labour leader insisted that was a "desperate lie".
On Wednesday, Offord doubled-down on his story, saying Sarwar had approached him "without his minders" after a Question Time broadcast from Paisley in December last year.
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