Conservative chief whip Michael Gove yesterday defended his party’s use of negative campaign tactics against the SNP – and insisted the Tory vote was growing north of the border.
Former Prime Minister Sir John Major this week became the latest senior politician to issue a dire warning over the potential influence a large group of Nationalist MPs could have in Westminster after May 7.
Sir John, the last Conservative prime minister to have an overall majority, said the surge of Nicola Sturgeon’s party was a “clear and present danger” to the future of the UK.
Some within the party have voiced concerns about the effect of negative campaigning, while here has also been some disquiet about “talking up” the prospects of the SNP. Senior Tory peer Lord Forsyth said this week that the tactic could backfire and threaten the future of the union.
But Mr Gove, speaking on a campaign visit to Westhill to support West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine (WAK) candidate Alexander Burnett, said: “I completely disagree, what’s putting the union at risk is the prospect of an SNP victory in seats in Scotland.
“The Conservative vote both in the course of this campaign and beforehand has been growing, it is the Conservatives who are the strongest party defending the union, the strongest bulwark against separatism.
“I think it is absolutely right in our campaign that we should underline the risks of voting for a party that wants to break up the United Kingdom.
“If people want to keep the United Kingdom together and want the economic stability, and security, the strong foundation that the UK can provide, voting Conservative is the best way of doing that.”
Mr Gove described the race for WAK as a “two horse race” between the SNP and Conservatives, despite the fact that Liberal Democrat Sir Robert Smith has held the seat at every election since 1997.
“I think it’s really a two horse race, and sadly, the Liberal Democrats are not at the races. Sir Bob Smith has been a great MP, really nice guy, but we’ve got to think about the future and we’ve got to think about this campaign. If people don’t vote for Alexander they could wake up on May 8 with a Nationalist MP representing a part of the country that doesn’t want to break up the United Kingdom.”
(SNP and Lib Dem comments coming as adds..)