Scottish Conservatives are the only alternative to the SNP in Edinburgh … says, ehm, … a Scottish Conservative!

Scottish Conservatives claim that they are the only party who can stop the SNP in Edinburgh and the Lothians. The Tory appeal to anti-independence voters follows the release of the latest YouGov opinion poll which predicts the SNP will win no less than 43 of Scotland’s 59 constituencies, an increase of eight MPs.

The Tories didn’t win any seats in Edinburgh at the last general election – the SNP won three constituencies while Labour and the Lib Dems won one apiece.

Hardly grounds for Tory optimism, you may think, but the Scottish Conservatives seem hell-bent on turning the general election into a Union vs Independence battle once again in Scotland, with a none too subtle appeal to Labour voters.

Lothian MSP Miles Briggs, said: “These figures show that Scottish Conservatives are the only alternative to the Nationalists in Edinburgh, West Lothian, Midlothian an East Lothian.

“This election is not about choosing whether you are Labour or Conservative, it is about saying no to Nicola Sturgeon and her divisive, ‘Independence at any cost’ government.

“Former Labour voters across Lothian have the power in their hands to stop Nicola Sturgeon and get back to the things that really matter like delivering improvements to health, education and transport.”

Health, education and transport are all live election issues for voters south of the border but in Scotland they are devolved to the Holyrood parliament, where the SNP are by far the biggest party.

i	code	constituency	Con	Lab	LD	Brexit	Green	SNP	PC	Other
553	593	S14000020	East Lothian	26	29	10	0	0	34	0	2
555	595	S14000022	Edinburgh East	16	25	10	0	5	45	0	0
556	596	S14000023	Edinburgh North and Leith	21	18	12	2	5	41	0	2
557	597	S14000024	Edinburgh South	15	49	10	0	3	23	0	0
558	598	S14000025	Edinburgh South West	27	12	11	2	4	43	0	1
559	599	S14000026	Edinburgh West	20	9	34	0	4	34	0	0
576	615	S14000043	Linlithgow and East Falkirk	27	18	8	3	3	41	0	1
577	616	S14000044	Livingston	25	22	8	0	3	43	0	0
578	617	S14000045	Midlothian	24	31	8	0	0	38	0	0

 

It may well be the case that the Tories won’t need to improve their position in Scotland, where they currently hold 13 of Scotland’s 59 seats. The latest YouGov poll predicts that the Tories will win an outright majority in next month’s general election – while being soundly trounced in Scotland.

So who offers most – or poses the biggest threat – to the people of Scotland: Boris Johnson or Nicola Sturgeon? That’s down to you, the voter …