Tory Ross defends Johnson no-show

MOST people will understand why the

Prime Minister is not campaigning in Scotland in the run-up to the Holyrood election, Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross has said.

The Tory MP defended Boris Johnson, saying the PM is focused on tackling the coronavirus pandemic, at the same time as he turned his fire on First Minister Nicola Sturgeon over her “record of failure”.

The Conservatives warn that if the SNP leader spends the next five years focusing on an independence referendum, drug deaths in Scotland could reach 2,000 a year and violent crime could also increase.

Mr Ross unveiled a new campaign advertising van yesterday in the Glasgow Southside constituency Ms Sturgeon is contesting. The event took place outside a drug rehabilitation centre that the Tories said had closed two years ago.

Ms Sturgeon last week admitted during the STV leaders’ debate that her Government “took our eye off the ball” after drug deaths surged.

Mr Ross said: “The Prime Minister and I keep up to date and the fact that he won’t be visiting, I think most people understand, because of the circumstances we face in this election, due to it being fought during a pandemic.”