The MSP for West Scotland, Jamie Greene, has resigned from the Conservative Party saying it is no longer the party he joined when Baroness Ruth Davidson was leader.
Mr Greene said that the party, which has now been reduced to 30 MSPs, has abandoned the centre ground for a “Reform-lite agenda”. He previously served as transport, education and justice spokesperson. First elected in 2016, he said: “I do not believe that I have left the Conservative Party. I believe that the party has left me.”
Writing to Scottish Conservative leader, Russell Findlay, he said: “”Chasing the votes of Reform party supporters will never see the Scottish Conservatives in government; there simply aren’t enough fringe right-wing Scottish voters to achieve that.”
He continued: “The Scottish Conservative Party I joined did the unthinkable and overtook the Labour Party to become Scotland’s main opposition in Holyrood. Twice. There was a point at which I, and others, believed we might have a genuine chance to govern Scotland as a successful broad-appeal centre right party. That now feels like a distant memory.
Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay said: “On a personal level, losing any colleague is disappointing and I wish Jamie well.
“But when I was elected, I promised to take the party in a new direction and said that we needed to be different.
“I promised change and I keep my promises, so I will keep standing up for the common-sense values of mainstream Scotland and opposing the damage caused by Holyrood’s left-wing consensus.
“I’ll continue taking a strong stance against the SNP on tax, gender self-identification, and the damage they’ve done to Scotland’s schools.
“Others may believe it’s best to let the SNP have their way. I will always oppose their dangerous agenda and put forward a proud conservative vision of a different Scotland.”
Political response
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP said: “I have a lot of respect for Jamie Greene. It takes courage to leave and do what you think is right.
“It illustrates how so many people who backed Ruth Davidson’s Conservatives are completely scunnered at what the party has turned into, lurching to extremes to fend off Reform and completely giving up on the centre ground.
“The Scottish Liberal Democrats overtook the Scottish Conservatives at the General Election. In huge swathes of Scotland, more and more voters are backing us because we’re best placed to beat the SNP.
“Only we have a plan to bring down NHS waiting lists, get a fair deal for carers, help struggling pensioners, lift up Scottish education and grow our economy.”
Scottish Green Co-Leader Patrick Harvie said Jamie Greene’s resignation from the Tory Party underlines the extreme and nasty direction that the current leadership has taken.
Mr Harvie said: “Jamie Greene is to be commended for his honesty in calling out the hard right, “nasty party” tendency of the current leadership of the Scottish Tories. It has become inevitable that this agenda would alienate people, and I doubt he will be the only person making this difficult decision.
“Jamie is a Conservative, and I’m sure that we will continue to disagree about many fundamental issues. But as the Tory Party abandons decency, abandons human rights, abandons climate action and embraces the values of the far right, I welcome the fact that those who want a less extremist form of politics are starting to speak up.”
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Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
