Ian Blackford has revealed he was the victim of a plot by fellow SNP MPs to oust him from his role as Westminster leader.
In an explosive interview revealing the extent of the split between the party in Holyrood and those in the House of Commons, the veteran politician: accused a group of MPs dubbed “The Tuesday Club” of doing everything to get rid of him; claimed they want more independence from the Scottish Parliament and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon; warned the SNP would not survive unless they were united; and admitted his response in the leaked tape recording over sex pest MP Patrick Grady was not appropriate.
Blackford, who quit as leader last week, said the plan to get rid of him began nine months ago and pointed to disagreements within a group of SNP MPs who play five-a-side football or go out drinking every Tuesday.
At his home in Skye, Blackford admitted there were rifts in the SNP at Westminster, with some furious by perceived meddling from the FM and her cabinet colleagues in Holyrood. He denied claims that his handling of the Grady sex pest scandal prompted his departure and warned that his successor would have to unite the group in order for the SNP to be successful.
He said: “Obviously the issues have been about what has led to this. I know some have raised the disciplinary issues from a few months ago. I actually don’t believe that is a factor. One of the things I decided to do early on was to support the Scottish Government.
“I saw ourselves as having that supporting role and I think there are some people in the group that would have preferred me to be a bit more independent. That has got more to do with it than anything else.” Asked if some fellow MPs thought he was taking instructions from Holyrood, he said: “I suppose so.”
MPs in The Tuesday Club include David Linden, Gavin Newlands, Alan Brown, Stuart MacDonald and Stephen Flynn, who is now tipped to replace Blackford as the group’s leader. Blackford said: “I think it’s fair to say what’s often referred to as The Tuesday Club, with one member in particular, there was a disagreement a number of months ago about a vote.”
Sources close to the former leader said the plot “at the root” of his ultimate demise stemmed from a vote on Tory plans to raise benefits by just £10.07 a month and the state pension by £5.55 a week in February. It is understood that the SNP leadership in Holyrood had recommended their MPs abstain, leading to anger in London.
SNP MPs had campaigned vigorously against cuts to benefits, urging then-chancellor Rishi Sunak to bring back the £20-a-week Universal Credit increase from the pandemic. Glasgow East MP Linden even launched a campaign calling for people to “Reject Rishi’s Universal Credit Crunch”.
Linden and Glasgow South West MP Chris Stephens defied the party’s orders and voted against the Government, before they were disciplined and Linden resigned as work and pensions spokesman.
Blackford, MP for Ross, Skye and Lochaber, said: “First of all, let me be absolutely clear – I did not like what the UK Government were doing. But if you vote down the uprating of benefits, you can’t amend it. And so, on balance, I took the view that it was right for us to abstain.”
Asked about the handling of the Grady scandal, in which Blackford was recorded at a private SNP group meeting supporting the shamed MP after he had been found to have sexually harassed a staff member, he admitted the situation could have been handled better.
He said: “First and foremost, my main responsibility is to the staff. In addition, I’ve got a responsibility and duty of care to MPs as well. Of course, I understand that what happened at that meeting was not as appropriate as it should have been.”
Blackford, who has been leader since 2017, said the claims that he was confronted by plotters to say he did not have enough support were “not true” and he admitted he had been hurt by the briefings against him.
He said: “The story that they came to me and told me I didn’t have the support and I had to go – that’s not true. I could have toughed this out. Obviously they’ve had pledges in support. I don’t deny that but I hadn’t spoken to these people and I think, if I’d been able to speak to some of them, I would have been able to win the day but it’s immaterial as we’re not in that place now.”
Kirsten Oswald, the SNP’s deputy Westminster leader, also announced she was quitting. She said in a statement it had been a “privilege to be part of the SNP leadership team” but it was time to “pass the baton to one of my many talented colleagues”.
Flynn, MP for Aberdeen South, has been touted as the obvious replacement for Blackford and has been backed by MPs across the party spectrum. Both Alyn Smith and Joanna Cherry are said to have given Flynn their support.
Blackford said he tried to do as “much as I could to make sure we hold people together” but added: “Of course, I respect that people are entitled to their views and have their differences. I have no objection to that but, if parties want to be successful, then they have to have unity.”
The MP is to focus on developing better relationships with the business community, having been handed a new role by Sturgeon on announcing his departure as Westminster leader.
He said: “I’m now doing the role that I want to do, which is taking the independence project forward and particularly dealing with engagement with the business community that needs to be put on a different footing.”
Asked if he would accept that the SNP was not strong in its appeal to business, Blackford said: “I think we should enhance our engagement, let me put it that way. Because of my background, I have the ability to do that.”
Prior to becoming an MP, the 61-year-old worked as a financial analyst, which he believes will help in his new role. He is also looking forward to spending more time in his constituency and with family, with less of a gruelling schedule.
As Westminster leader, he would often have to spend longer in London than his colleagues and faced a commute of more than a day from the Isle of Skye to the capital city twice a week.
He said: “I’ll still be going to Westminster every week, that won’t change, but one of the things that was really getting me down was the travel and the amount of time I have to spend away. In some cases I have to leave on a Saturday and I’ll get back on a Friday night due to the flight arrangements from Inverness. Spending time at home on a Sunday, the things you do with family is really important to me.”
Last night, SNP Treasury spokesperson Alison Thewliss announced her interest in succeeding Blackford.
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