Rishi Sunak is taking over a "morally bankrupt" Tory Government with no mandate, it has been stated, as calls in Scotland for a General Election grow with the announcement of yet another Prime Minister.
Sunak became the third Tory leader and will be the third Prime Minister in less than two months.
Labour and the SNP said there must be an election and warned he cannot unleash more austerity on Scotland.
READ MORE:Rishi Sunak will be the next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Anas Sarwar, Scottish Labour leader, said: “The crisis that the UK faces is not simply down to who the Prime Minister is - changing the Prime Minister will not stop the rot.
“This is a morally bankrupt and incompetent Tory party that cares only about hanging on to power.
“The Tories have turned Britain into an international punchline - and they have treated you with contempt.
“Rishi Sunak has no mandate to lead the country. It’s time we had a General Election and swept this immoral Government from power.
“There is a majority for change - and the Labour party, under Sir Keir Starmer, represents that change. It’s time we called an end to this Tory merry-go-round of chaos.”
READ MORE: Rishi Sunak to be Prime Minister: Demo planned for Glasgow city centre
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon congratulated Sunak on becoming the new Conservative leader then immediately called for an election.
She said: "I'd suggest one immediate decision he should take and one he certainly should not."
Sturgeon added: "He should call an early General Election.
"And he should not - must not - unleash another round of austerity. Our public services will not withstand that."
The First Minister stated: "The governance of any country cannot simply be a revolving door that one party gets to pick time and time again who occupies the highest office in the land.
"Of course, there should be a General Election but do I think that is going to happen? That the Tories are voluntarily going to concede that? No, I don't."
The Scottish Conservatives however backed the new Prime Minister.
Douglas Ross, Scottish Conservatives leader, said: “Recent weeks have been difficult and unsettling for both the Conservative Party and, more importantly, the country. Now all our focus must be on bringing the nation together and navigating the tough economic conditions we face.
“As he showed during his time as chancellor - not least in safeguarding one in three Scottish jobs during the pandemic through the furlough scheme - Rishi Sunak is uniquely well equipped for that task.”
While Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie, Glasgow MSP, said: “Rishi Sunak’s appointment will be music to the ears of his super-rich friends, but, for millions of people in Scotland and beyond it will be devastating.”
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel