BBC Scotland has responded to Tory complaints of pro-SNP bias in recent coronavirus coverage.
Jackson Carlaw declared "war" on the corporation on Friday morning, accusing them of not featuring nearly enough Jackson Carlaw.
The Scottish Tory leader was also reportedly miffed at the coverage of this week's decision by the Scottish Government to extend business grants to firms affected by coronavirus.
Last month, as part of a £350bn package to help firms cope with the economic catastrophe caused by pandemic, Chancellor Rishi Sunak offered grants of up to £25,000 for struggling retailers and pubs.
In England and Wales this grant is available per outlet. But in Scotland it was initially only available per business with ministers here saying this limit would allow them to offer support to more sectors.
Ultimately, this divergence could have meant that a company who owned four coffee shops in England getting £100,000 of support from the government, while a similar business in Scotland would only have received £25,000.
Earlier this week, following many, many complaints, the Scottish Government moved to extend their scheme. Firms with more than one outlet can now claim 75% of the grant for each subsequent property.
In their letter to BBC Scotland’s Head of News, Gary Smith, the Tories claim Forbes was not challenged on this partial uturn when she was interviewed on the network by journalist Laura Goodwin.
They say she should have been asked “why she had changed her mind from the previous day, when she had insisted her decisions had provided sufficient protection.”
The letter suggests this was a failure on the part of the BBC to offer "fair coverage" to all parties and a more fundamental failure to scrutinise Scottish Government ministers and their policies.
READ MORE: Jackson Carlaw claims BBC Scotland has pro-SNP bias in complaint
A senior party source told the Daily Mail: "The last thing we want to do is take journalists to task, because we have immense respect for the important job they do.
“But the situation with BBC Scotland has become unacceptable, and that's why we're reluctantly making these representations. Viewers of its television and radio news deserve to hear from Scotland's main party of opposition and, as it stands, that isn't happening. The BBC has a duty to act on this.”
The complaint also mentions a Reporting Scotland story where Nicola Sturgeon discussed various aspects of the coronavirus pandemic. Carlaw claimed the report should have mentioned the First Minster was responding to his questioning.
A source close to Carlaw said: "It's not something we would do lightly but enough is enough. We know the SNP do this and it is time for us to go to war with them as well."
BBC Scotland said it was “disappointing” that the Tories felt the need to complain.
A spokesman said: "Audiences have been coming to BBC Scotland news programmes in big numbers over the last few weeks, particularly to Reporting Scotland which has been getting well over half a million viewers every night, because they trust us to bring them accurate and impartial coverage.
“It's disappointing therefore that the Conservatives have taken issue with that coverage and don't feel Opposition voices are being heard enough during a time when there has been so much cross party agreement.
“The interview with Kate Forbes on Reporting Scotland was robust and challenging and followed comments we aired by business leaders about the support they were receiving.
“These are challenging times for journalists along with everyone else, but we will continue to try to provide our viewers and listeners with accurate information that they need to make sense of an increasingly complex situation."
An SNP spokesman called on the Scottish Tory leader to focus on coronavirus rather than his screentime: "For Jackson Carlaw to take the huff because he is not getting credit for the work of other people displays a distinct lack of leadership in this crisis.
“The only thing that matters is that people and businesses get the financial support they need. That is what the Scottish Government is fully focussed on.
“Jackson Carlaw should stop this self-declared ‘war’ now before it goes any further."
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