The prime minister claims he is not concerned the Tories could be wiped out north of the border as he made a visit to Moray where MP Douglas Ross is standing down at the next general election.
Rishi Sunak visited RAF Lossiemouth on Monday where he thanked military personnel for their sacrifice ahead of Christmas.
The visit comes just months after Moray Council secured a combined total of £38 million from two different UK Government schemes.
Elgin is poised for a massive refurbishment after confirmation of a surprise £20m boost in a pledge to help so-called “run-down” towns.
And Moray will receive a further £18m from UK ministers in its third round of levelling up funding.
Quizzed by the P&J on whether the party could lose Moray at the next election, Mr Sunak deflected and claimed his trip was to “say thank you to our troops”.
On the government investment for Moray, he said: “We’re investing directly in communities, working in partnership with the local authorities and others to make sure we can deliver change for people across Scotland.”
‘We remain confident’
Speaking to journalists at the military base, he was further asked if he was concerned about an electoral wipeout north of the border.
“No, I’m not actually”, he said.
“We remain very confident about both what we’re accomplishing and delivering in Scotland and the response that we’re getting from people on the ground.”
Mr Ross and Scottish Secretary Alister Jack, two of the party’s most high-profile MPs are standing down at the next general election.
However, Mr Ross intends to stay on as a Highlands and Islands MSP at Holyrood and as leader of the Scottish Conservatives.
Polls show the Tories have been lagging far behind Labour in recent months. Sir Keir Starmer’s party is expected to win back the keys to Downing Street if opinion polls are replicated at an election.
But in many seats across the north-east and Moray, the party will instead go head to head with the SNP.
‘Very disappointing’
Mr Sunak also weighed in on the prospect of further income tax rises in Scotland, which he said would be “very disappointing”.
It comes ahead of Tuesday’s draft Scottish budget, where Finance Secretary Shona Robison will unveil the government’s tax and spending plans for 2024-25.
The Scottish Government is reportedly considering introducing a new higher rate 45% tax band for earnings over £75,000 to plug a £1.5 billion black hole.
Mr Sunak told journalists: “Scotland is already the highest taxed part of the UK. And the Scottish Government has received record funding from the UK Government – an extra half a billion in the autumn statement.
“It’s important now the Scottish Government take responsibility for their finances.
“But what we’re able to do because we’ve managed public spending sensibly is deliver a tax cut for everyone in Scotland and across the UK.
“The rate of national insurance is going to be cut from 12% to 10% from January which will deliver a typical person in work a tax cut worth £450.
“I know that he cost of living remains the most important challenge facing families across Scotland and the UK.”
‘Bit of a cheek’
Ms Robison hit back at the prime minister, saying he had a “bit of a cheek” to make such remarks.
Speaking during a visit to a community cafe in West Lothian, she said the cut in national insurance payments for workers was “pre-election positioning by the Tories, entirely at the expense of public services”.
Insisting that “these are not our values or our priorities”, the Deputy First Minister added: “What I would say to Rishi Sunak is he has got a bit of a cheek, pitching up in Scotland to say anything given his autumn statement is deprioritising public spending.
“To have a real terms cut to the NHS in England is an astonishing position at a time when services are still recovering from Covid.
“Clearly that’s not something we can follow and wouldn’t want to follow.”
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