Sturgeon ‘churlish’ on union benefit of vaccine delivery

Nicola Sturgeon is being "churlish" by not accepting that the coronavirus vaccination programme is one of the "unquestionable benefits of the union", Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross has said.

The pair clashed on the issue in a virtual debate staged by the National Union of Students in Scotland, with the First Minister claiming it is "simply not true" to suggest Scotland could not have procured vaccine doses in the same number if it was no longer part of the UK.

Mr Ross contrasted the success of the vaccination scheme in Scotland - where he said 60.5 per cent of the adult population has now had their first jab - with Europe, where the average is just 20.5 per cent.

He said: "The best country in Europe is actually Hungary at 38.2 per cent. By any measure we are miles ahead here in Scotland.

"And the fact that Nicola Sturgeon refuses to accept that is because of the procurement and the development of the vaccines that the United Kingdom has taken forward is churlish, is irresponsible, and the fact that she got so angry at even being questioned about that shows she doesn't want to accept the unquestionable benefits of the union of the United Kingdom in delivering our way out of this pandemic through the vaccination programme.” Ms Sturgeon accused the Tory of using "disgraceful" tactics, saying he has been "talking down our vaccination programme for political purposes".

In a heated clash, she told Mr Ross: "At the start of this year, when you were wrongly saying that the vaccination programme was running behind the rest of the UK, you were claiming then it was the Scottish Government's vaccination programme.

"Now that it is doing really well, you're saying it is the

UK Government's vaccination programme - make your mind up.

"The UK chose to procure in the way it did and you are saying Scotland couldn't have chosen to do that with the other UK nations had we been a member of the EU. That is quite simply not true.

"We procured the vaccine in the same way we procure the flu vaccine.”