Scotland is at a crossroads ahead of May’s election, Reform’s Scottish leader Malcolm Offord has said. Party members gathered on Thursday at a country club in Renfrewshire as candidates were announced and the policy platform launched.
Among Reform’s pledges is a reduction in the number of Scottish Parliament constituencies from 73 to 57. The 27-page document also proposes shutting down quangos and returning their powers to democratically-elected ministers. On energy, the party vows to scrap all net zero targets set by the Scottish Government and fast-track planning for new projects, including open cast coal mining.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage told the event there is little to distinguish political parties in Scotland, but his party will challenge the Holyrood consensus. He praised Offord for being unafraid to challenge what he called the 'cosy club' around Holyrood and the political class.
Offord said Scotland is 'broken' and that it will take a decade to fix. He urged Scots to 'put aside all the rancour, grievance and division promoted by the SNP'. On public sector bodies, he reiterated his view that all should be scrapped, with only necessary ones reinstated later.
Reform UK chairman David Bull said the 'stakes are incredibly high', calling the election 'the last chance saloon for Scotland and the United Kingdom'. He cited polling showing Reform at 20% in Scotland, putting them in second place. SNP depute leader Keith Brown responded that Reform 'couldn’t care less about Scotland'.
