Russell Findlay's blueprint for the Tories to silence Reform's noise and turn 'common sense' into votes
Russell Findlay is poised to lay his party’s attack on Reform thick during the Holyrood campaign, but the noise around Reform is likely to be deafening
Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay had a spring in his step as he set out how on earth the Tories can turn around an incredibly bleak outlook heading into May’s Holyrood election.
It wasn’t the Wetherspoon's breakfast Mr Findlay consumed before he took to the stage or the astonishing stand-up routine former Scottish Tory leader Jackson Carlaw used to warm up the room. But Reform UK’s disastrous campaign launch last week has renewed a spirit in the Tories we have not seen for some time, certainly not under Mr Findlay’s leadership.
“Yes, we all see the polls. Yes, they’re not pretty,” Mr Findlay told activists and candidates gathered in Glasgow. That is putting it mildly.
The Scottish Tories are staring down electoral oblivion in May if the polls are to be believed.
“But I have confidence going into this election and so should you,” Mr Findlay said, trying to galvanise his colleagues, many of whom would presumably rather hide in a cupboard than hit the campaign trail in the coming weeks.
A tried and tested strategy for the three Scottish Tory leaders that came before Mr Findlay was to ensure the Conservatives were the only party willing to protect the union, jumping on fears the SNP were putting the United Kingdom at risk.
You could argue that divisions over independence have been more of a vote-winner for the Scottish Tories than the SNP over the past decade. With John Swinney placing that as a key part of his re-election push, Mr Findlay is also hoping to capitalise on the constitution.
In doing so, the Tories are casting Reform as very wobbly on independence.
“They are not even a unionist party”, Mr Findlay, insisted, speaking at the very spot at the Glasgow Trades Hall that Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar betrayed the prime minister in February.
Reform, which in truth is pretty wobbly on several issues, is weak on the constitution - having stood pro-independence candidates, which is not exactly a traditional move by so-called unionist parties.
Nigel Farage’s Reform leader in Scotland, Malcolm Offord, has also not said great things to boost his party’s unionist credentials - proposing that if Scotland’s economy grows, then we can talk about breaking up the UK.
It’s not just the constitution Mr Findlay intends to shout down Reform on the campaign trail. The Tories believe the party is weak on benefits, their tax plans don’t add up and their prescence will only hand victory to the SNP.
The Scottish Conservatives have jumped on polling they claim shows that the public’s priorities align with theirs.
“We go into this election knowing we’re on the right side of public opinion on all the big issues”, boasted Mr Findlay.
He pointed to “our demand for honest sentencing” and “our plan to give headteachers the power to exclude violent pupils”, adding that “most people out there agree with our common-sense plans”.
Mr Findlay stressed that the seemingly never-ending cost-of-living crisis “will be at the heart of our campaign”.
The Scottish Tories hope their blueprint to cut taxes, boost the economy and shrink the benefits bill will be enough to persuade would-be Reform voters to stick with the Conservatives - while warning the SNP are on the cusp of a majority that could end the union.
We are already seeing big cracks in the Reform project in Scotland. Mr Findlay will have to hope that becomes a gaping big hope by the time voters go to the polls in May.
But Mr Findlay’s biggest problem in targeting Reform’s weaknesses, and there are many, is that many voters do not care that the party is a shambolic circus. If anything, that’s a huge part of the appeal.
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