SNP MP accuses Ash Regan of 'trying to look like an opposition politician'

An SNP MP has accused leadership hopeful Ash Regan of "trying to look like an opposition politician". Glasgow South MP Stewart McDonald hit out at Regan on Twitter on Tuesday morning after she apologised on behalf of the party for its U-turn on dualling the A9 and A96.

McDonald shared an article on Twitter with a picture of Regan holding an Inverness Courier front page which said "RIP SNP Promise of dualling A9 by 2025."

He tweeted: "No issue with the leadership candidates having a go at some government policy - we should expect that during a contest - but for goodness sake, try not to look like an opposition politician. Think we all need to remember we’re in the same party."

Ash Regan has been criticised by Stewart McDonald (DAILY RECORD)

Only 11 miles of the A9 has been dualled since the SNP came to power in 2007. Roughly 70 miles are still to be upgraded, while designs are unfinished for some sections. The work was proposed due to safety concerns. There were 13 deaths on the road last year, compared to one in each of the previous three years.

Transport minister Jenny Gilruth announced earlier this month that the deadline to dual the remaining parts of the road between Perth and Inverness by 2025 was “simply unachievable”.

This is not the first time that McDonald has criticised Regan since the leadership race began. He hit out at Regan's plans for independence on Saturday, calling them "ill-thought out".

Regan has said she would begin negotiations for independence if more than 50 per cent of Scots vote for the SNP at an election. She said in an interview with Sky News that "back in the day, Margaret Thatcher and the UK Government, they accepted this as entirely legitimate for the SNP to have this as a policy. And that that would mean a trigger for independence."

Commenting on the clip, McDonald tweeted: "A plan for independence this is not. It’s ill-thought out, unserious and based on something Margaret Thatcher - who has been dead 10 years and out of office for over 30 - said, but I doubt she would’ve ever actually honoured."

To sign up to the Daily Record Politics newsletter, click here.

READ NEXT:

• SNP has 'no obvious successor' to Nicola Sturgeon as support for independence hovers around 50%

• British Gas profits triple as Scots politicians make renewed call for 'proper' windfall tax

• Five times Nicola Sturgeon and Scottish football crossed paths during First Minister's reign