Jamie Stone slams 'out of touch' Conservatives as he repeats call for immediate election
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Jamie Stone has issued a renewed call for an immediate general election after accusing the Conservatives of trashing the economy and being out of touch with voters.
The Liberal Democrat MP for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross claimed that for too long the UK government had taken the public for granted.
He was speaking in the aftermath of the decision by Prime Minister Liz Truss to sack Kwasi Kwarteng as Chancellor of the Exchequer.
The Lib Dems have condemned the government for the "mini-budget chaos" leading to increased mortgage costs.
"So much damage has already been done by these Conservatives and they will force millions of struggling families and pensioners in the Highlands to pay for it," Mr Stone said today.
"The Conservative government has already trashed the British economy and put hundreds of pounds on people's mortgages. Now they are going to inflict even more pain by hiking energy bills, raising taxes and slashing crucial public services, while still protecting the excess profits of oil and gas giants and bankers' bonuses.
"The whole Conservative Party is out of touch and does not care. That is why we need a general election, to take them out of power and end this crisis."
He added: “For too long this Conservative government has taken all of us here for granted. With the next election needed more than ever, it’s clear that only the Liberal Democrats will stand up for the far north.”
On Friday, after Mr Kwarteng's dismissal was announced, Mr Stone said: “This mustn’t just be the end of Kwarteng’s disastrous chancellorship – it should be the death knell of the Conservatives’ reckless mismanagement of our economy.
"We owe it to the households, individuals and businesses up and down Scotland, who have been hit hard by this crisis, to take firm action now.
“Across Scotland, people are angry, fed up and worried about the future. Most of all, they are furious that Conservative MPs seem to think this is an acceptable way to conduct the government of our country in these difficult times.
“Enough is enough. It started with Boris Johnson failing our country, and now Liz Truss is trashing our economy. It’s time for us to have our say in a general election.”
