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To put it politely, it’s been a very difficult year for the Tories both at a UK-wide level and here in Scotland with leadership changes, internal fallouts and general election losses. The ever-evolving threat of Reform is also becoming an uncomfortable and all-consuming reality for the party. At the start of the year though, the Scottish Conservatives were enjoying a spell of leading the charge against the SNP. Thanks to the SNP finance scandal, the resignation of Michael Matheson and the collapse of the Bute House Agreement, the Scottish Conservatives were benefitting from the chaos within the party at the head of government. Former Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross took great pleasure in calling for motions of no confidence in Humza Yousaf. After making these demands, a victory for Mr Ross and his party shortly followed when the former first minister resigned saying he “paid the price” for the way he ended the power-sharing deal with the Scottish Greens. Yet, ‘Vaulting ambition which o’erleaps itself ’, struck badly for a Macbethian Mr Ross soon after. Perhaps dizzy with his own success in causing the SNP discomfort, Mr Ross went on to make what is arguably his biggest mistake by replacing a sick colleague and running for a seat at the general election. This summer, following anger in his own ranks at his decision to run for Westminster while dropping David Duguid from the race, Mr Ross announced his resignation during one of the worst general election campaigns for his party. It is often understandable to see a resignation after poor results, it is quite something to see it before even crossing the finishing line. This certainly did not create a good look for the party and signalled instability in their ranks. At the hands of their former leader, the blows for the Scottish Conservatives didn’t stop there. In July, Mr Ross then went on to be the only candidate to notionally lose (there was a boundary change) a member of parliament seat for the Conservatives in Scotland. What’s more, this loss was at the hands of the SNP who joined the UK Conservative party as the biggest losers at this election. The overall impact of the general election on not just their former leader but the party across the UK was huge. Read more from the Unspun newsletter: Scottish Politics Christmas Wish: Let's treat women better Should Scotland be worried about its relationship with China? Is Starmer hurting Sarwar's chances of becoming FM? Right from the word go, the general election was a disaster for the Tories. The firing gun was shot by a drenched PM Rishi Sunak outside Downing Street. After big slip ups at a UK level such as Mr Sunak leaving D-Day commemorations early and questionable TikToks about national service for young people, the Conservatives were not doing well at all on the campaign trail. This translated into a historic defeat for the UK party on results day with Labour winning big. Although they technically only lost one seat as the ‘blue line’ in the South of Scotland remained, the general election showed the severe threat of Reform UK to the Conservative Party. Across Scotland, Reform won 7% of the votes at the general election and overtook the Conservatives in 25 seats - mainly in the central belt. The Conservatives also lost 16 deposits at this election - worse than Reform who only lost ten. As you read this, keep that thought of the ever present threat of Reform in your mind as we will come back to them. Much like in this article, they aren’t going away any time soon. The difficulties for the Scottish Conservatives did not stop at the general election as after Ross announced his bowing out of leadership, an ill-tempered ‘blue on blue’ race to fill his boots ensued. After a feud involving leadership candidate Meghan Gallacher and MP John Lamont as well as revelations Mr Ross had tried to make Mr Findlay his successor last year, the contest divided Conservatives into different camps. Now the new leader Russell Findlay who won the contest in August this year has the incredibly tricky task of trying to bring the party back together. After winning the race, Mr Findlay said under his leadership the Scottish Conservatives are going to change. The former crime reporter also said he was “acutely conscious” of the danger posed by Nigel Farage’s Reform UK and he told The Herald at the end of November the current support for Reform is "too high" for his liking. His comments came after three Glasgow council by-elections where Reform won 18% of the vote in the northeast of the city and nearly 13% in Maryhill, and Drumchapel and Anniesland. And Mr Findlay should be worried for his party. Tens of thousands of Tory voters defected to Reform UK during the general election and polls show the problem the right-wing party poses is only going to get worse for the 2026 Holyrood elections. After Christmas, Reform declared a surge in membership they claim has made them the UK's seond-largest party. Although sources in the party say they have not yet overtaken the Scottish Tories in membership numbers, they say they are very much in touching distance. Nigel Farage has told journalists that Scots are ready to vote for Reform at the Scottish elections because there is no enthusiasm for Labour and the Conservatives have “deserted the pitch”. Polls suggest Reform is currently on nearly 11% of the vote in Scotland and pollsters such as Sir John Curtice have suggested this could translate into two seats in most regions and at least one in the others. Around 14 MSPs. A real threat to the Tories whose seats they are likely to take. “For those thinking that we'll replace the Tories, raise your ambition,” Reform UK’s deputy chairman David Kirkwood told a busy room of supporters at a conference in Perth. What's more, with Donald Trump showing his support to Nigel Farage after his presidency win in November, there are concerns amongst the Scottish Conservatives and beyond that Reform will have a lot more power behind them for Holyrood election campaigning than they did during the general election this year. If Trump pays a visit to Scotland, can we expect him endorsing Reform and their Scottish candidates? It’s not completely out of the question and with polling suggesting a quarter of Scots back Mr Trump’s presidency, this could influence voters who may choose Reform over the Tories. Moving into the new year, the Scottish Conservatives will be keen to turn the tide on poor election results and bitter fallouts within their party. Now they are no longer in power south of the border, this could potentially mean the Conservatives are able to pick up voters at the Scottish Parliament elections who are frustrated with the UK Labour-led government and a further year and a half of SNP power in Scotland. In Scotland and beyond, however, frustration with parties in power will not be enough. The Tories are going to have to prove to voters who may be leaning towards Reform in an age of political apathy that they are a new Conservative party. A changed one which has shed past internal acrimony for unity and solutions.Dale drills Byng twice in a pair of road games
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Saints quarterback Derek Carr appears to have a broken left hand. That’s the Saints’ fear after the initial examination of the injury that knocked Carr out of today’s game against the Giants, according to NFL Network. Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football reported that Carr had his left hand in a cast after the game. Although the injury is not to Carr’s throwing hand, it would be tough for him to take a snap with a broken hand, and he would seem likely to miss some time. Given that the Saints are far out of playoff contention and there’s only four games left in the season, it wouldn’t be surprising if his season is over. It also wouldn’t be surprising if his tenure with the Saints is over, given his contract and the realities of the Saints’ salary cap situation. It’s possible that attempting to leap for a first down and putting his left hand down to break his fall will be the last thing he does in a Saints uniform.
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