PERTH has been put on "amber alert for flying debris" as Tory leadership hopefuls head to the city, an SNP MP has joked.
SNP shadow Commons leader Pete Wishart, MP for the city, mocked the “ferocious” contest between Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, with Perth the location of a debate between the pair on August 16.
He said the barbed comments from candidates made a "bag of rats" look tame by comparison.
Commons Leader Mark Spencer (below) ignored the criticism but joked he is praying for his survival in the next Government.
Speaking at business questions, Wishart told the Commons: “Can we have a debate about rats in the sack?
“There’s a confrontation going on just now that would make these much-maligned rodents seem like sedated gerbils on tranquilisers.
“This is ferocious, unrestrained stuff, there’s no mercy shown and they’re going for the kill.
“Accusations, poison barbs, simmering resentment, and that’s just what they’re saying about each other in their own camps.”
Wishart joked he could be a peacemaker, adding: “The leadership circus is coming to Perth and already we’ve put the city on an amber warning with the threat of flying debris.
“This could be even worse than what we’ve had in the heatwave.”
Wishart suggested Spencer has been “a little bit close to the big dog” Boris Johnson, but added: “We hope to see him here when we return in September.”
Spencer, speaking on the final day before summer recess, replied: “I too pray for my survival.”
He went on to criticise the Scottish Government’s record in power, noting of the SNP: “Maybe it’s time they stop their ideological fixation on independence but we know why they’re doing it, we know what they want to cover up.
“The CBI and KPMG have produced reports showing that Scotland lags behind the rest of the UK in nine out of 13 productivity indicators.
“On education, the First Minister said she would be judged on her Government’s ability to narrow the attainment gap between schools in poorer and wealthier areas, and she even said she’d be willing to put her neck on the line for this pledge – and then she dropped her promise to help poorer students in Scotland.”
