Boris Johnson has been told to “pay compensation to Scotland”, as Brexit disruption begins to bite for Scottish firms.
Hundreds of businesses including retailers Marks and Spencer, Tesco and Fortnum and Mason were hit by Brexit red-tape at the borders last week.
Scottish seafood exporters were also impacted, with new systems of bureaucracy and IT problems causing shipments to be spoiled.
With Westminster to return from recess on Monday, SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford has called on the UK Government to make provision for a multi-billion-pound compensation package to mitigate the costs to Scotland’s businesses and economy.
Mr Blackford said: “It is completely unforgivable that Scotland is being forced to pay such a devastating high price for Boris Johnson’s extreme Tory Brexit deal, with mounting costs, red tape and disruption.
“The Tories must apologise to Scottish businesses and pay compensation to Scotland for the long-term damage they are doing to our economy – costing us billions in lost trade and growth.
“This disastrous Tory Brexit was a completely unnecessary act of economic vandalism, which has been inflicted against Scotland’s will.
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“It is now beyond doubt that the only way to protect Scotland’s interests and our place in Europe is to become an independent country.”
The UK Government has provided just shy of £200 million to the Scottish Government to prepare for Brexit.
‘Show me the money’: Michael Gove wants to see Scotland’s Brexit outlay
In the run up to December 31, Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove called on the SNP to produce an itemised list of Brexit preparedness spending, after hearing “one or two voices of concern” about how money passed on from Westminster has been used.
Scottish Conservative Constitution Spokesman Dean Lockhard says the call for compensation is “typical” of the SNP “stirring up grievances when they have been given hundreds of million from the UK Government to help Scotland’s firms get ready for Brexit.”
“More than four years after the vote to leave the EU, the SNP have failed in their duty to support firms in Scotland in getting ready for the new trading arrangements. They are not being transparent about where they have spent the significant funding they have received in preparation money from the UK Government.”
The Scottish Government has said any consequential funding derived from UK Government Brexit preparations had been absorbed into the Budget and “used in line with Scottish priorities” to support a “vast range of preparatory work involving virtually every public body in Scotland, including every local authority”.