Scottish Tories attempted to distance the party from Boris Johnson as an exclusive poll shows most Scots think he’s unfit to lead the country.
Our poll from Survation suggests nearly two-thirds of Scottish adults don’t think he is up to the role of Prime Minister.
The findings come as the voters make their choices for the next Scottish Parliament.
Conservatives appear to be on course to retain their place as the largest opposition party, just ahead of Labour.
The SNP are certain to be the largest party and could still get a majority of seats, Survation polling revealed yesterday.
Asked which statement is closest to their view, 63% said Mr Johnson is unfit, 28% said he is fit and 9% did not know.
Mr Johnson had been widely expected to make a campaigning visit to Scotland but it was put off, with the pandemic being blamed.
However, his opponents claimed it was because he appears to be so unpopular.
‘Not about anyone down south’
A Scottish Conservative spokesman, reacting to our poll result, said: “This election isn’t about London or anyone down south, it’s a Scottish Parliament election about Nicola Sturgeon’s appalling record in government and her plans to push for another referendum if the SNP gets a majority.
“Only the Scottish Conservatives can stop an SNP majority, stop indyref2 and get all of the focus on rebuilding Scotland.”
Mr Johnson, in a last pitch to Scots, urged voters to use their ballots to send a message to the first minister that the focus should be on “rebuilding our economy and getting people into work”.
He said: “I think that most people in Scotland, most people around the whole of the UK, feel that this is not the time, as we’re coming forward out of a pandemic together, this is not the time to have a reckless, and I think irresponsible, second referendum.”
SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon, campaigning in Aberdeen, said: “I’ll concede I’m biased – I never thought Boris Johnson was fit to be Prime Minister and nothing that has happened since then has changed my mind on that.
“There are some really deeply serious allegations swirling around Boris Johnson, all of which add up to the sense he thinks he’s above the laws and rules that apply to everybody else and that he can operate in some kind of elite way.
“He’s not, and people in this constituency, in Scotland and in other parts of the UK where there are elections have a chance to show the Tories they are not untouchable, and they are not above the law and the rules. I would encourage people to take that opportunity.”