The operators of the National Lottery have cast major doubt over SNP claims that Scotland’s elite athletes will continue to benefit from funding worth hundreds of millions of pounds.
Sports Minister Shona Robinson has claimed that under independence, Scotland would continue to receive sports money from National Lottery Good Causes.
But Camelot has said this would not be a decision for them to make but for the rest of the UK.
As part of the UK, Scottish professional sportsmen and women, and local sports clubs, have benefitted from more than 5,000 sports grants with a total value of £184,016,406.
The SNP have yet to fully explain how groups would continue to benefit from lottery funding under independence.
The Scottish Conservatives revealed a year ago that SNP ministers had not held any talks with Camelot on what would happen to the UK National Lottery under independence.
Since the establishment of the National Lottery by the UK Conservative Government in 1994 grants, including those made to athletes and sports groups, totalling £2.5 billion have been awarded to causes in Scotland.
The concerns come ahead of a report to be published by the Working Group on Scottish Sport (WGSS), set up by the Scottish Government to look at what would happen to sport under independence.
Scottish Conservative sport spokeswoman Liz Smith MSP said:
“The SNP’s suggestion that our sportsmen and women will continue to be funded through the lottery under independence is yet another attempt to hoodwink voters.
“They have no evidence to back this up and now Camelot has cast major doubts over their assertions that everything would somehow carry on as normal.
“With less than 200 days until the referendum, it is very concerning that the Sports minister is unable to answer key questions about how they would plug the funding shortfall for our athletes.
“Several of our Scottish Olympians in Team GB, including Sir Chris Hoy, have praised the value of UK lottery funding which has helped our athletes to reach the pinnacle of their sport.
“Curling alone has received more than £8 million in recent years.
“There is no doubt that success enjoyed by Team GB in London Olympics, the Paralympics and more recently the Winter Olympics, was achieved by all the nations of the UK coming together to pool resources and deliver the sporting success we all want to see.”
The former Scottish Cricket internationalist added:
“Scotland benefits from hundreds of millions of pounds being given to good causes from the UK National Lottery, which would be at risk in the event of Scotland becoming independent.
“The First Minister and the Yes campaign may like to dictate what they think is best for England, Wales, Northern Ireland, but continuing to fund athletes in a another country is not likely to be a priority for the rest of the UK in the event of separation.
“The SNP obsession with constitutional change is getting in the way of what really matters – nurturing an interest in sport for young Scots and developing the sporting stars of tomorrow.”