Tory MSP ‘not even looking at me’ after defection, says Reform MSP

Scotland’s only Reform MSP has said that one Conservative MSP is “not even looking at me, let alone talking to me” since his defection.

Speaking to Holyrood magazine Graham Simpson said that despite an initial attack by a Conservative source he has managed to continue good working relationships with most of his former colleagues.

Although he said one unnamed Conservative MSP is “not even looking at me, let alone talking to me” since his defection.

He added: “Look, there’s a difference between slagging off Reform, which you’d expect to happen in the run-up to a Scottish Parliament election, and slagging off the individual.

“I’ve also been very clear that I won’t indulge in that kind of behaviour.

“I’m not going to get down and dirty and start attacking individuals for their character or personality, when it should be a debate about policy.”

Mr Simpson defected from the Conservatives to Reform in August, saying the he decided to join Reform UK to “create something new, exciting and lasting”.

Last week Mr Simpson’s bill to establish a recall system for Holyrood was agreed at stage one.

The proposal is designed to improve the accountability of MSPs and improve standards in politics.

Asked whether those standards had been met by Nigel Farage in relation to the Clacton property owned by his partner Laure Ferrari, Mr Simpson said he had “no idea” because he had not “look at the case in any detail”.

He added: “If somebody in Reform has fallen foul of those standards, I’m happy to say that, as long as I have the details. I’m not afraid to say that. I’ll call that out.”

The MSP also spoke to Holyrood about the murder of his sister, Vikki Thompson, and the campaign to reform double jeopardy laws, his efforts to ban double jobbing, and wider reforms he would like to see at parliament.

He has been tasked with creating Reform’s manifesto for the Holyrood election next year.

He describe it as a “massive job” as he said not much thought had been given to devolved policy areas.

“We are going to have to produce something that’s not just immigration and net zero,” he added.

According to a recent poll carried out by Survation for the IPPR Scotland think tank Mr Farage’s party could win 22 MSPs, becoming the second-largest group in Holyrood.

On how many he would like to see returned to parliament, Mr Simpson said “over 20”.

He continued: “It might sound ambitious, but you may as well be ambitious… At the moment, I would say around the 20-mark would be good, over that would be very good”.