Senior SNP figure Joanna Cherry accuses party MSP Emma Roddick of 'no life experience' and 'virtue signalling'

Mr Ewing has represented the Inverness and Nairn area since devolution in 1999.

However, former equalities minister Ms Roddick is to be the SNP’s candidate for the Inverness and Nairn seat in next year’s Holyrood election after Mr Ewing said he would not stand for the Nationalists again.

Earlier this month Mr Ewing then announced he would be standing against Ms Roddick for the seat as an independent candidate.

However, Joanna Cherry KC has said Ms Roddick “will lose her seat” because “voters are sick of politicians virtue signalling”.

Posting on X, Ms Cherry said: “Emma Roddick will lose her seat next year because voters are sick of politicians with no life experience virtue signalling about these sorts of issues while wholly failing to meaningfully address everyday issues like the cost-of-living and poor services.”

Ms Roddick and Ms Cherry have opposing views on gender reforms.

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The latter’s comments come after Ms Roddick set out why voters should back her by highlighting a number of policy differences between herself and Mr Ewing. She pointed to the fact Mr Ewing voted against equal marriage and gender reform, and opposed an outright ban on fox hunting back in 2001.

She said she “believes in equality for everyone”, adding: “I accept that I am very closely aligned to a lot of these issues that Fergus is on the absolute opposite [side] of.”

Ms Roddick added: “I am happy with equal marriage - he is happy with fox hunting.”

In 2021, Ms Roddick was top of the SNP regional list for the Highlands and Islands. Due to the voting system used in Holyrood, the Lib Dem wins in the northern isles meant the SNP was able to secure a regional seat in this area.

When she was first elected, Ms Roddick was the youngest MSP in the Scottish Parliament. She had been a Highland councillor for two years before being elected to Holyrood, and served as a junior minister under former first minister Humza Yousaf.

Mr Ewing has already predicted the SNP will throw “the kitchen sink and perhaps even the campervan” into trying to stop him winning at next year’s election.

He said earlier this month his former party had “lost its way” and “ceased to be champions for the people of Scotland” as he confirmed he was standing as an independent.

Mr Ewing has been a vocal critic of the Scottish Government on several issues over recent years, including the lack of progress on dualling the A9 and A96 roads.

He said after announcing his decision: "I'm going to be putting out a whole series of proposals about how we can improve devolution as a whole, including picking the best people from each of the main parties because we may need - as has happened in Germany and Ireland - to have a firewall against extreme options.”