Moray MP Douglas Ross has slammed SNP MSP Richard Lochhead for failing to stand up for his Moray constituents over crucial road upgrades.
Douglas’ criticism comes after the Scottish Conservatives used debating time in the Scottish Parliament to highlight the SNP-Green government’s continued failings to dual the A9 between Perth and Inverness.
SNP transport minister Jenny Gilruth recently confirmed that her party’s own promise to dual the section of the A9 by 2025 will now not be met.
Douglas says that this is a “betrayal” of communities in the Highlands and the ongoing slow progress in dualling the A9 is only putting more and more lives at risk. Last year, 13 people died on the A9 in 2022.
Despite the pleas from the Scottish Conservatives, SNP MSPs including Richard Lochhead voted against the motion put forward by shadow transport minister Graham Simpson which called on the SNP-Green government to outline a revised timetable as to when the A9 will finally be fully dualled.
Douglas says that Richard Lochhead should have taken a leaf out of SNP veteran Fergus Ewing’s book who voted against the SNP whip and joined the criticism over the A9.
He added that the further delays to dualling the A9 will have a “serious” knock-on effect on the dualling of the A96 across Moray which has been “kicked into the long grass” since the SNP brought the Greens into government and that Richard Lochhead must “urgently explain” why he put party interest ahead of the interests of people and businesses in Moray.
Moray MP Douglas Ross said: “The broken promises over the dualling of the A9 are a betrayal of communities in the Highlands. The SNP-Green government are trying to use every excuse possible but they simply won’t wash with local communities who have been let down at every turn.
“These further delays are only going to put more and more lives at risk, with 13 already tragically dying on the A9 in the last year alone.
“The Scottish Conservatives were determined to get answers from the SNP-Green ministers over these delays and when this critical route will finally be fully dualled, but shamefully they were not forthcoming. No updated timescales were laid out leaving motorists at the mercy of continuing to drive on a road that simply is not fit for purpose.
“The delays to the dualling of the A9 will have a serious knock-on effect of dualling the equally dangerous A96. The commitment to dual the A96 has been kicked into the long grass ever since the SNP brought the anti-car Greens round the ministerial table.
“Moray’s SNP MSP Richard Lochhead has serious questions to answer over his voting on the motion brought forward by my party. This offered a perfect opportunity for him to put his constituents first rather than his party.
“He typically decided not to. He could have taken a leaf out the book of his SNP colleague Fergus Ewing who broke party ranks and slammed his government’s record on the A9.
“Richard Lochhead must urgently explain why he is completely unwilling to listen to people across Moray who are desperate to see both of these trunk routes urgently upgraded and dualled in full. Anything less would be a total dereliction of duty as our local MSP.”
