SNP MP Pete Wishart has been urged to apologise for comments he made at the SNP Conference on the issue of A9 dualling, where he was reported as saying that he was ‘sick and tired’ of Scottish Conservatives ‘constantly bringing this up in Parliament.’
Perthshire Conservatives, who are at the forefront of campaigning for the killer road to be upgraded, have described these comments as ‘crass’ and insulting to those who have lost loved ones on the route.
Commenting, Murdo Fraser MSP said: “I have many constituents who will be appalled by these crass comments from this SNP MP. He may be sick and tired of us raising this issue, but nowhere near as sick and tired as I am of reading about fatal accidents on the A9 that could have been avoided if the SNP hadn’t broken their promise to dual the road by 2025.
“I can only imagine how the families of those who have died on the A9 will feel reading these insensitive remarks.
“Pete Wishart has a long history of making inappropriate comments, and this is just the latest example. He needs to apologise to those who have lost loved ones on the A9 for his language.”
And Stephen Kerr, Scottish Conservative Westminster Candidate for Angus and Perthshire Glens, added: “What a ridiculous comment from Pete Wishart. He ought to take a long look in the mirror and apologise to families of the tragic victims of the A9. And he should say sorry to the people of Highland Perthshire for the failure of the SNP to keep their commitment to dual the entirety of the A9 by 2025.
“He says he’s sick and tired of the Conservatives raising the issue of the dualling of the A9 in parliament. Well, here’s news for you Pete, the people of Highland Perthshire are sick and tired of empty and meaningless promises from superannuated SNP politicians.
“Pete Wishart can choose to ignore the voters of Highland Perthshire, but they always have the final say at the ballot box. And they won’t be ignored.”
Mr Kerr continued: “We are speaking to lot of people on their doorsteps, and they are angry about the SNP’s utter failure to dual the A9. They feel they have been strung along for the last 16 years. The SNP have dualled 14 kilometres of the A9. There’s still 124 kilometres to go. It’s a colossal failure even by the SNP’s standards.”
Luke Graham, who is standing for the Perth and Kinross-shire Westminster seat for the Scottish Conservatives, said: “The SNP have had 16 years to fix the A9. The brass neck of an SNP MP who has been in nearly 20 years is astonishing. It shows that the SNP only care when they are worried about losing seats.”
