Day SNP unleashed their ‘fury brigades’ on Ruth
Tory boss victim of ‘vitriolic tirades’ about army post
RUTH Davidson has accused the SNP of encouraging ‘vitriolic tirades’ against her after a Nationalist MP questioned her appointment to a top army post.
The Scottish Conservative leader launched her scathing attack after Dunfermline and West Fife MP Douglas Chapman asked questions in the house of Commons about her new role as honorary Colonel to her former regiment.
Miss Davidson claimed SNP ‘outriders’ had encouraged ‘fury brigades’ on social media to criticise her appointment.
The role with the 32 Signal Regiment is most commonly undertaken by retired senior military personnel or members of the Royal Family.
in Twitter posts made while on holiday, Miss Davidson said she had been the victim of the ‘highland Spring treatment’ – a reference to the company’s chief executive backtracking over his criticism of the push for a second independence referendum after being contacted by the Scottish Government.
The SNP have accused her of having a ‘summer meltdown’. Miss Davidson paraded in military uniform last month when she was unveiled as honorary Colonel for the next five years.
On Twitter yesterday she insisted she had delayed the announcement until after the local and general elections to ‘take the politics out of it’.
She said: ‘i know the fury brigades on social media react to the slightest trigger... but even i wasn’t expecting the hostile and vitriolic tirades that followed the event at Edinburgh Castle to promote Armed Forces day, encouraged by SNP outriders.’
Miss Davidson pointed out that several people from ‘civic Scotland’ had held similar honorary posts in the past, adding: ‘My fear is that people will think twice about saying yes if they reckon they’re going to get the “highland Spring” treatment.’
She went on: ‘The change in approach from the SNP these past few months has been really interesting... their crouching defensiveness over the sort of stuff they would have simply brushed off a couple of years ago has been remarkable.
‘The effort that must be involved in being so furious all the time must be exhausting.’
in a written question to Defence Secretary Michael Fallon, Mr Chapman asked what ‘formal processes’ were followed by the regiment before appointing Miss Davidson. Defence Minister Mark lancaster responded: ‘The granting of honorary rank is not to be seen as a reward and all three services take care to ensure that appointments have not been made solely on the basis of personal or professional acquaintance or friendship.’
he published figures showing that 113 ‘civilians’ have been offered – and accepted – honorary rank in the past five years.
An SNP spokesman said: ‘Ruth Davidson’s summer meltdown suggests her holiday is long overdue... These are perfectly legitimate questions.
‘Being quite this hot-headed is not a great look for a political leader nor a colonel.’