Nicola Sturgeon reveals over 5,000 people have joined the SNP since Westminster walk-out

NICOLA STURGEON has revealed 5,085 people have joined the SNP since yesterday lunchtime’s Westminster walk-out.

The surge of new members followed the dramatic scenes in the Commons which saw the party’s MPs leaving during Prime Minister’s Questions.

Westminster leader Ian Blackford had been ordered out by the Speaker following a dispute over calling for a vote in protest over Brexit legislation.

The SNP accuse the Conservatives of a ‘power grab’ with the EU Withdrawal Bill, and wanted more of a debate on the issue than the small amount of time allocated on Tuesday.

BREAKING @NicolaSturgeon confirms 5,085 people have joined @theSNP in the last 24 hours. Stand with us in opposing Tory attempts to rip up the devolution settlement and grab powers from Holyrood. Join here: https://t.co/ZeYzafaWIw

— Peter Murrell (@PeterMurrell) June 14, 2018

Nicola Sturgeon said: “What we saw this week was the most clear and powerful evidence so far that the Westminster system simply does not work for Scotland.

“The Tories plan to remove powers from this Parliament without the consent of this Parliament – they ripped up the convention that has underpinned devolution for nigh on 20 years.

“They did so in the most contemptuous way possible, with a 15-minute debate and no opportunity for a single Scottish MP to get to speak.

“And they hoped that nobody would notice.

“Well thanks to SNP MPs doing their job and standing up for Scotland, people have noticed.”

She said that the overwhelming vote of the Parliament was casually cast aside in just 15 minutes at Westminster, demonstrating the ‘utter contempt’ the Tories have for devolution and Scotland.

Ms Sturgeon later said that the Tories would “pay a very, very heavy political price”.