SNP has ignored pothole problem while wasting billions elsewhere – Findlay

The SNP has ignored fixing Scotland’s “dangerous” pothole problem while “wasting” billions of pounds in other areas, the Scottish Conservative leader has claimed.

Speaking from a street off Scotstounhill train station in Glasgow, Russell Findlay said the SNP Government has ignored the issue.

He said potholes cause accidents where those affected can claim damages from councils, ultimately at the cost of the taxpayer.

On Monday morning, Mr Findlay was joined by Scottish Conservative voters as he discussed his party’s plans for a national pothole action fund, which would aim to address the problem if they get into power.

He told the Press Association: “We’re here today because we could have been standing, frankly, in any street in Scotland to see potholes as bad as these.

“Motorists are trying to go to work, go about their daily business and, more often than not, they’re encountering these highly dangerous potholes.

“And they’re not just dangerous, they’re not just causing accidents, but they’re also costing taxpayers huge sums of money because, more often than not, cars going through these things end up being subject to costly repairs, and the cost of those repairs is very often claimed by motorists from councils, quite rightly.”

He said the pothole fund would see roads repaired with better equipment to ensure they do not return, and the Tories would also give the Scottish Roadworks Commissioner more power to take action against roadworks companies who fail to deliver an adequate service.

Mr Findlay said: “It’s so frustrating. You go to some parts of Scotland and you see vast sums of money being spent on new lands, hard landscaping, on cycle lanes, on paths, and it all looks lovely…

“Sometimes this looks like a third-world country we’re in if you look at the mess the SNP have made of our streets.”

He added: “We’ve identified six billion pounds worth of SNP waste. You don’t have to look too far to see examples of that.

“They spent almost half a billion pounds on two dodgy ferries that will never be right. They’re about to spend over a billion pounds on a prison that they said would cost 100 million pounds.”

A YouGov poll, released on Friday, said the Scottish Conservatives are predicted to win just seven seats in the upcoming election, placing them in last place.

Asked if he is concerned by the poll, Mr Findlay said: “I’m losing track of all these polls. There is only one poll that matters, and that’s on May 7, when the people of Scotland decide we need to get the SNP out.

“We need to stop an SNP majority, and people across Scotland know that they’ve got a secret weapon to do so, a secret weapon that they used to great success in 2021 and 2016, and that’s to use their peach-coloured ballot paper to back the Scottish Conservatives.”

The SNP has been approached for comment.