Desperate Scottish Tories face oblivion at hands of Reform if they don't change course

Record View says everyone can see the Conservatives are desperately trying to ape Reform UK as they plummet in the polls.

The Scottish Conservatives used to try to present themselves as the party of the small business owner and small town respectability in general.

Strong on law and order but very much against state intervention in industries and actively hostile to trade unionism.

Even after their 1997 wipeout at the hands of Tony Blair, the Tories could rely on the support of at least 20 per cent of the electorate in Scotland.

But that’s no longer the case. Not one but two Tory MSPs have now chosen to quit the party in the past six months.

Jeremy Balfour announced his resignation yesterday and blasted leader Russell Findlay, saying the Scottish Tories were now veering towards “reactionary” politics.

Everyone can see the Conservatives are desperately trying to ape Reform UK as they plummet in the polls.

But it’s a strategy that’s doomed to fail. Reform present themselves as all things to all men – as long as you strongly dislike immigration.

Nigel Farage’s party still has no leader in Scotland and no distinct Scottish policies. They are an angry protest movement.

The Tories should stick to what their supporters traditionally wanted from them.

The Record has long campaigned for many things the Tories once actively opposed – Scottish devolution, tougher gun controls in the wake of Dunblane, and the minimum wage for workers.

We have also repeatedly called out the many useless Conservative prime ministers who have been inflicted on Scotland in recent years.

But there is space for a centre-right party in Scotland. The Tories will soon be replaced by Reform if they don’t change course.

Lasting impact

It’s nice to hear a genuinely uplifting story from Anas Sarwar about how a random act of kindness was the key to his rise in the political world.

He told the Record his family would not have settled in Scotland but for a woman giving his grandad shelter in a Moray town more than 80 years ago.

The MSP is Glasgow born and bred but he said Lossiemouth is the place that shaped his family.

Sarwar’s grandad travelled to the north-east town with the intention of working temporarily as a door-to-door salesman.

While out alone in the pouring rain, a Lossiemouth local invited him to take shelter in their home. It was from that moment on he settled in the town and established his family in Scotland.

How uplifting it is that Scottish act of kindness all those years ago is still having an impact.