A SENIOR SNP MP accused Brexit supporters of running the "most deceitful and mendacious" political campaign in the UK's history" at a pro-EU rally in Edinburgh.
SNP MP Tommy Sheppard issued the blistering attack at the protest in the Scottish capital yesterday.
The rally was one of a number of events held in cities across the UK aimed at halting the UK Government's Brexit plans.
Organised by the Young European Movement and the European Movement in Scotland, speakers included politicians from SNP, Labour and the Lib Dems.
The crowd – many waving EU flags and holding Exit from Brexit signs – also heard from migrants living in Scotland.
Addressing the protest outside Edinburgh City Chambers, Sheppard said that in last year's referendum Leave ran "the most deceitful and mendacious campaign in British political history".
He said many had now changed their minds, adding: "We are the voice, not just for the 48 per cent of the UK (who voted against Brexit), we are probably now the voice for the majority that is saying think again, don't go over this particular cliff."
Labour MP Ian Murray delivered a speech against a hard Brexit and insisted the UK must remain in the single market.
Murray said: "The economic consequences of what this Government are about to embark on are disastrous for this country, and actually pretty disastrous for our European neighbours as well.
"The only way we can stop that from happening is to stay with the customs union and the single market."
Rallies by EU supporters also took place in Newcastle, York, Nottingham, Bristol, Cardiff, London, Cambridge, Reading, Liverpool and Birmingham.
The protest came as Hillary Clinton said during an interview for BBC One’s Andrew Marr Show that the UK would be put at a “very big disadvantage” if it failed to secure a Brexit deal. She said the country could not pin its hopes on a deal with President Trump, who “doesn’t believe in trade” and was close to pulling out of Nafta, the US’s free trade deal with Canada and Mexico.
Tory Chancellor Philip Hammond last week said Brexit negotiators were "the enemy" – a remark he subsequently described as a "poor choice of words".
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel