Back to Scotland, where some rather strange events are unfolding. The leader of the Scottish Conservatives Douglas Ross — who most recently was the MP for Moray, alongside being MSP for the Highlands and Islands — this morning brought media from across the country together for an emergency announcement. After months of pledging to step down as a Tory MP, Ross has revealed he will now stand in the new seat of Aberdeenshire North and Moray East.
But Ross’s announcement has been met with a rather large backlash — not least because his party has effectively deselected his colleague David Duguid, who is currently in hospital with a spinal illness. Dubbed ‘three jobs Douglas’ by his adversaries, the Scottish referee will now contest the new seat after Duguid, formerly MP for Banff and Buchan since 2017, was dropped this week on health grounds.
In an impromptu briefing this morning, Ross told reporters it was with ‘regret’ the party had decided Duguid couldn’t be selected, adding:
This constituency will be very competitive, a hard fought close contest between the Scottish Conservatives and the SNP.
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