Anas Sarwar has accused Scots Tory leader Douglas Ross of “disgusting” support for Boris Johnson and urged voters to punish the Conservatives at the council elections.
The Scottish Labour chief claimed Ross had used the suffering of people in Ukraine to protect the Prime Minister.
He also said Nicola Sturgeon had “failed” on the cost of living crisis and demanded she use the powers at her disposal.
Polls suggest Sarwar’s party could be on course to reclaim second place from the Tories at today’s local authority elections after years in the doldrums.
Coming second would mark progress for Scottish Labour and raise serious questions about Ross, who humiliatingly u-turned on calls for Johnson to quit over partygate.
In an interview with the Record, Sarwar said he found the polling “very encouraging” but admitted he still had work to do to persuade voters.
He pleaded with voters not to back the Tories: “Boris Johnson and Douglas Ross want to pretend they’re the great defenders of the United Kingdom. In actual fact, they’re the biggest disaster in the United Kingdom.
“Don’t reward Boris Johnson with your vote, don’t reward this toxic, out of touch, corrupt Tory party with your vote. There is a safer option to vote for a political party that is pro-UK, that is pro-Scotland staying part of the UK, but also recognises that the UK needs to change - and that’s the Labour Party.”
Sarwar laid into Ross for claiming that Johnson should stay to lead the response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“I’ve found the contorted ways in which he has tried to use Ukraine and the suffering of the people of Ukraine to try and defend the indefensible, actually I find it quite disgusting,” he said.
“When he’s recalled really horrific tales, rightly around people and how they are suffering in Ukraine, how the families are suffering, but to then at the end of those sentences say ‘and that’s why Boris Johnson must remain Prime Minister’ is disgusting.
“He tried to take a principled position, but it didn’t last too long. And now he’s left trying to defend the indefensible and has made himself look pretty weak.”
He said of Johnson: “The man is an international laughing stock. He’s a laughing stock here, he’s a laughing stock around the world, and the sooner we get rid of them, the better it is for the United Kingdom.”
He also had harsh words for Sturgeon who, according to a poll commissioned by Labour, has failed to impress voters with her response to the cost of living crisis.
Sarwar said: “At a Scottish level they’ve replicated the Rishi Sunak plan of giving people less than £4 a week. We should be much more ambitious, much more targeted with our support here in Scotland.
“I absolutely believe that she has failed in the cost of living crisis. And she has failed to take the necessary action. And she’s failed to recognise the level of hardship. And instead she’s tried to use it, like she often does, to make it some kind of constitutional fight.
“She has power. She needs to use that power to change people’s lives here in Scotland.”
He also hit out at the Tories and the SNP for opposing a standalone windfall tax on the profits of energy giants.
“The excuse that both the SNP and the Tories have been using is that it means less money for investments,” he said.
“The chief executive of BP this morning has confirmed that they would not withdraw any investment if a windfall tax was introduced.”
Sarwar has attracted criticism during the campaign for ruling out town hall coalitions with the SNP or Tories after the election, with Sturgeon chiding him for “political immaturity”.
He responded: “I’ve been hearing Nicola Sturgeon shouting the same slogans since I was at school. People can see that we’re bringing a different kind of leadership to the Labour Party in Scotland. We’ve got a different kind of credibility. We’re trying to change the way we do politics.”
He also admitted progress at the council elections is important in re-establishing credibility within the wider Labour party:
“I don’t want to be in a situation where we’re on the verge of a UK Labour Government and Scottish Labour is the drag on the ticket.
“So we’ve got to be better here in Scotland as well and demonstrate to people...that we have a plan to change people’s lives in Scotland, and that they too will benefit from a UK Labour government.”
An SNP spokesperson said: “Scottish Labour has zero credibility when it comes to finance. No one should forget the exorbitant legacy of their toxic PFI contracts – now estimated to cost £30billion – which is still a massive drain on the public purse.
“Anas Sarwar hypocritically calls for more spending while continuing to block further devolution that would give Holyrood the power to act in Scotland’s best interests rather than suffer under this corrupt and negligent Conservative government.
“The cost of living under Westminster control is too high a price for Scotland and it’s shameful that Anas Sarwar prioritises that over the interests of hard-pressed families.”
A spokesman for the Scottish Tories said: “Anas Sarwar talks about principles but he’s already broken his promise to not stand pro-indyref2 candidates in this election. His principles seem to crumble when it comes to standing up for the United Kingdom against the SNP.”
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