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In a tweet last month, Suzanne McLaughlin revealed she “despised” the Tory party ahead of the Holyrood election. The candidate for Glasgow said: “When I was young & full of rage I hated Tories to my very core. “Now I’ve reached a gentler age, I’ve realised I despise them even more.”
Stephen Kerr, the Scottish Conservatives’ chief whip, was infuriated by the Tweet and claimed the SNP has a “problem with hatred”.
Mr Kerr also called on the SNP to address the comments for the candidate who stood on the Glasgow regional list last month.
Mr Kerr said: “The SNP have a real problem with hatred.
“Is this really the sort of country we want to live in, where choosing to support a different political party makes you a figure of hatred?
“It would be great to see the First Minister disavow this kind of hatred especially since this person stood alongside her on the Glasgow list.”
Ms McLaughlin also sparked controversy after a previous tweet was discovered earlier this year.
In 2015, Ms McLaughlin made controversial remarks regarding Israel which sparked criticism from campaign groups.
She said in 2015: “Lest anyone be in any doubt.
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As reported by The Sun, The Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “The SNP has adopted the International Definition of Antisemitism, which clearly states it is antisemitic to deny the Jewish people their right to self-determination or compare Israelis to Nazis.
“Suzanne McLaughlin must now face party discipline.”
At the time, the Scottish Tories called on the First Minister to act, although the candidate remained on the party’s list for the election.
Despite the controversy, the SNP proceeded to put in a strong electoral performance in Holyrood.
Indeed, Ms Sturgeon’s party won one additional seat in Holyrood to keep its place as the biggest in the parliament.
Although the SNP won 64 MSPs, they fell short of an overall majority as Scottish Tories managed to retain all 31 seats earlier this month.
Despite falling short of an overall majority, Ms Sturgeon has pledged to proceed with her plans to steer the country out of the pandemic before holding an independence referendum.
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