The Tories tried to use the new Scottish economy figures to bash independence. It didn’t end well for them.

Ruth Davidson doing a speech at the Tory party conference


Support us and go ad-free

On 22 August, the Scottish government published its Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland (GERS) report, which estimates public service revenue raised in Scotland.

The GERS report can’t be used to understand the finances of an independent Scotland, because it reflects the economic and financial realities of Scotland within the United Kingdom. But that didn’t stop the Scottish Conservatives starting an old Scottish constitution debate on Twitter.

It didn’t end well for the Tories.

The Scottish economy and GERS

SNP strategist Ross Colquhoun took to Twitter to announce the key ‘take-aways’ from the GERS report:

However, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party leader Ruth Davidson did not delay in denouncing the idea of Scottish independence:

And SNP MP Peter Grant snapped back to inform Davidson that GERS doesn’t reflect the reality of an independent Scotland:

It appears Davidson was jumping the gun, as nobody was even talking about Scottish independence.

SNP MSP Paul Wheelhouse also demanded an apology over the coverage of GERS by BBC News:

The reaction

As usual, Twitter didn’t disappoint. Some people provided very valid comparisons with other small independent nations:

Voters also challenged the Scottish Conservatives on the way their compliance with Brexit put the economy at risk:

And they questioned the economy continuing under the status quo:

Others pointed out that Scotland is a country that is committed to equality and social justice:

The Scottish Conservatives are using the GERS report for petty political advantage. The Tories continue to criticise economic performance in Scotland, yet are happy to go along with Brexit. For Scotland, the potential implications of Brexit could cancel out the progress made in its economy over the past 12 months.

So perhaps the Scottish Conservatives should stop obsessing about independence and get on with the day job.

Get Involved!

– Join The Canary if you appreciate the work we do.

Featured image via Conservatives/YouTube

Support us and go ad-free

We need your help to keep speaking the truth

Every story that you have come to us with; each injustice you have asked us to investigate; every campaign we have fought; each of your unheard voices we amplified; we do this for you. We are making a difference on your behalf.

Our fight is your fight. You’ve supported our collective struggle every time you gave us a like; and every time you shared our work across social media. Now we need you to support us with a monthly donation.

We have published nearly 2,000 articles and over 50 films in 2021. And we want to do this and more in 2022 but we don’t have enough money to go on at this pace. So, if you value our work and want us to continue then please join us and be part of The Canary family.

In return, you get:

* Advert free reading experience
* Quarterly group video call with the Editor-in-Chief
* Behind the scenes monthly e-newsletter
* 20% discount in our shop

Almost all of our spending goes to the people who make The Canary’s content. So your contribution directly supports our writers and enables us to continue to do what we do: speaking truth, powered by you. We have weathered many attempts to shut us down and silence our vital opposition to an increasingly fascist government and right-wing mainstream media.

With your help we can continue:

* Holding political and state power to account
* Advocating for the people the system marginalises
* Being a media outlet that upholds the highest standards
* Campaigning on the issues others won’t
* Putting your lives central to everything we do

We are a drop of truth in an ocean of deceit. But we can’t do this without your support. So please, can you help us continue the fight?

The Canary Support us

Comments are closed

Related articles