Tory leader Ross in push for tactical voting as he hits out at Hate Crime Act

Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross has urged Labour and Lib Dem voters to back his party during a campaign visit to Argyll and Bute.

Meeting with the party’s local candidate Amanda Hampsey ahead of the general election expected this year, the Moray MP said his party was just 4,000 votes behind the SNP in the Argyll and Bute seat at the 2019 election, but 10,000 votes were cast for other union-backing parties.

The newly-formed Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber seat is the “perfect example” of why voters should back his party, Mr Ross said.

“At the last election we were just 4,000 votes behind the SNP candidate, yet 10,000 voters backed the Liberal Democrats and Labour in third and fourth place.

“This time, if those voters get behind the Scottish Conservatives and our great local candidate Amanda Hampsey, we can win and ensure that Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber has an MP focused on the priorities of their constituents, not pushing Humza Yousaf’s independence obsession.

“But it is not just in Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber; in seats right across Scotland from the Borders to the North, it is only the Scottish Conservatives who can beat the SNP.

“In this year’s election, if voters get behind our candidates, then together we can not just defeat the SNP locally but also show Humza Yousaf the door.”

The Scottish Tory leader also hit out at the Scottish Government’s Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act, which came into force on April 1.

The first week of the changes saw more than 7,000 complaints, with just 240 – 3.3% – recorded as hate crimes.

The Act consolidated previous hate crime legislation and created an offence of stirring up hatred against certain protected characteristics.

Mr Ross has been critical of the legislation and said voters could use the election to “reject” it.

“The Hate Crime Act is draining police resources at a time when they can least afford it and undermining Scotland’s reputation on free speech,” he said.

“The public are increasingly turning against Humza Yousaf’s illiberal and damaging Act. The only winners are the perpetrators of real crimes that the police no longer have the manpower to investigate.

“This is entirely a problem of Humza Yousaf’s making. He needs to accept that his Hate Crime Act is not fit for purpose and scrap it immediately.”

Meanwhile, the SNP appointed long-serving MP Stewart Hosie as the party’s campaign manager ahead of the election.

Mr Hosie said he was “thrilled and honoured” to be appointed to the role, adding that the party was “ready and raring to go”.

First Minister Humza Yousaf praised Mr Hosie’s “unrivalled wealth of experience and expertise”, adding: “This Westminster election can’t come soon enough. It’s time to get rid of the Tories and elect a strong group of SNP MPs to stand up for Scotland at Westminster.”