JOHN Swinney said he was left feeling “perplexed” by the questions asked by the Scottish Tories at FMQs.
Speaking in Holyrood, Tory MSP for Edward Mountain told the First Minister that since the problem to dual the A9 by 2029, “transport projects in central and southern Scotland were prioritised”.
He then asked Swinney if he was willing to meet campaigners to commit to this promise to keep true to his word.
The First Minister (below) replied: “See that’s where I think these kind of contributions don’t help the reasoned deliberation of policy within this parliament.
“As I pointed out last week, I came into government here in 2007 committed to A9 dualling.
“And this Parliament took a decision which stopped me from spending £500 million on A9 dualling because the Conservatives, the Labour Party, the Liberals and the Greens forced me as a minister in a minority government to spend £500m on the Edinburgh Tram project.
“This Government had a commitment to spend it on A9 dualling.”
The First Minister (below) then hit out at MSPs who were whispering the words “17 years ago” and said that if the Scottish Government had been able to proceed with projects at that time, it would have had the money to dual the A9.
“Now I’m a bit perplexed by what projects Mr Mountain doesn’t want us to have taken forward,” Swinney said.
“Did he not want us to take forward the Queensferry Crossing? Did he not want us to take forward the Aberdeen Western Peripheral?
“There’s Mr (Alexander) Burnett sitting there, he’ll be driving on that route, so will Liam Kerr.
“Do they not want these projects to be delivered in different parts of the country?”
He said the Parliament needed “less posturing from the Conservatives” and more of a reasoned debate.
Meghan Gallacher clash
As well as clashing with Mountain, the First Minister also clashed with Meghan Gallacher.
She told Swinney that a quarter of households with children had spent a year or more in temporary accommodation, saying the SNP have "failed to turbo boost" housebuilding.
The First Minister replied: "My goodness, the brass neck of some Conservative members in this Parliament.
"For 14 of the last 17 years, this Government has railed against the austerity inflicted upon us by Meghan Gallacher's (above) Conservative government.
"With all the damage that was done and we're all agreed that it was a disastrous period of austerity. But even despite all that, this Government has built more affordable houses per head of population than in England and in Wales despite the austerity of the Conservatives."
Swinney did say Scotland had a housing emergency but that the country was "glad to see the back of the Conservatives".
