HOLYROOD'S presiding officer has been asked to intervene to stop "hate" in Scottish politics after Nicola Sturgeon said she detested the Conservatives.
Tory MSP Stephen Kerr, the party's education spokesman, wrote to Alison Johnstone this morning urging her to intervene.
Mr Kerr referred to rreports of Conservative members being spat at and having eggs thrown when they arrived at a party leadership hustings in Perth in the summer.
He accused the First Minister and SNP leader of inciting "further aggression" with her words on the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg show yesterday.
"I am writing on the subject of standards and decency in politics. From your seat in the Scottish Parliament you will be only too aware that Scottish politics is not in the place we would like it to be," he wrote in the letter to Ms Johnstone.
"Divisions remain entrenched in our society following the 2014 referendum and both the current and previous SNP Governments have done little to change that."
Mr Kerr wrote that the First Minister had said she detests "supporters of the Scottish Conservatives".
He added: "Nicola Sturgeon's position demands she be the leader for all Scots regardless of who they voted for.
"With vandalism taking place at Scottish Conservative offices and following Conservative members being spat at and targeted with eggs at a recent leadership debate, Ms Sturgeon's words are an incitement to further aggression.
"I am asking what you can do, with the influential place you hold in Scottish politics, to counter the damage the First Minister is doing, by promoting a more cordial state of affairs, where we can disagree with each other without resorting to such hate."
The First Minister was criticised on Sunday for saying to the BBC: "I detest the Tories and everything they stand for."
She later clarified the remarks to say she meant Conservative policies.
John Swinney was asked about these comments on the BBC's Breakfast programme this morning.
The Deputy First Minister said: "The First Minister said that she detested Conservative policies and the values of the Conservative Party.
"And I associate myself with those comments.
"Because I think what's clear is the Conservatives are taking the United Kingdom in a direction which is profoundly damaging for many people in our society."
Mr Swinney also said he had not received a response to a letter he had written to the Chancellor calling for urgent talks in the wake of the mini-budget.
He added: "It's not just the letter of October 1.
"Over the summer, the finance ministers of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland also wrote to the then Chancellor, setting the need for urgent action over the summer to tackle the cost-of-living crisis.
"And there hasn't been a response to that letter either."
He said the UK Government was not taking its engagement with devolved administrations seriously.
A SNP spokesman said: "This absurd letter says far more about the Scottish Tories than it does about the SNP, and its tone is deeply irresponsible.
“A Tory MSP using Parliamentary resources to chase cheap headlines while their constituents are pushed further into poverty by a Westminster government that has trashed the UK economy is contemptible."
Last week the Scottish Parliament revealed it was recruiting a new member of staff who would monitor online abuse directed at MSPs.
Security measures were enhanced at Holyrood following the murder of the Conservative MP Sir David Amess in his Southend West constituency on October 15 last year.
A Holyrood spokesman said last week: “The SPCB [Scottish Parliament Corporate Body] is acutely aware of the rising level of online abuse and intimidation towards elected representatives.
“From April 2023, we will be trialling an in-house service that will identify key words and potentially threatening language relating to MSPs on social media platforms.
“Members will expressly have to opt into the service which would operate on their behalf. Any issues of concern picked up by the service would be escalated to Police Scotland as appropriate.”
A Scottish Parliament spokesman said: “The Presiding Officer has received the Member’s letter and will respond in due course.”
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