Douglas Ross brands Scottish independence debate 'completely bonkers' in comeback speech

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Douglas Ross has branded a Holyrood debate on Scottish independence as "completely bonkers".The Scottish Conservatives leader attempted a comeback speech in Edinburgh today after a disastrous 2022 for his party.He admitted "political turbulence in London over the last year" caused "profound difficulties" after two Tory prime ministers were forced to resign in disgrace.Ross himself was pilloried after he initially supported calls for Boris Johnson to quit Downing Street only to perform a sudden U-turn - leading to claims he had the "backbone of a jellyfish".But he offered no regrets for his flip-flopping and insisted his party remained the only real opposition to the SNP in Scotland.

The Tory MP also hit out at the Scottish Government for using the first scheduled Holyrood debate of 2023 to discuss independence.It comes after Keir Starmer used a speech in London yesterday to claim the "Westminster system is part of the problem" in a pitch to Scots voters who support ending the Union.The Labour leader had said that people voted for independence because they wanted "control over their lives and their community."The Record asked Ross if he understood why many Scots had voted for independence in 2014.He said: "Yes, I do and I also understand why 55 per cent of people voted against"He added: "Right now, I don't see that as a priority for people.

If we are looking at 2023, and challenges that lie ahead, we're starting right now with a crisis in our NHS."We know there is the potential for our education system to suffer as a result of strike action.

We know there is a global cost-of-living crisis."We don't know what's going to happen in Ukraine or the remainder of the year.'We know that public services are struggling and need