Scottish election: SNP rubbish claims Nicola Sturgeon snubbed Question Time debate

Opposition politicians claimed that they were told to expect an all-leaders debate tomorrow, and that the First Minister agreed to join before pulling out.

According to The Herald an email dated April 12 showed a member of the Question Time team telling a party press officer that they were “inviting Scottish party leaders to take part in the show”.

While leaders Anas Sarwar, Douglas Ross and Willie Rennie, and Greens co-convener Lorna Slater, will represent their parties, SNP depute leader Keith Brown (below) will appear.

The National understands that the programme has not been billed by the BBC as a leaders special, but a regular edition of the broadcaster’s flagship show hosted from Scotland ahead of the May 6 election.

According to the SNP there “has never been any suggestion that the First Minister would be taking part in this debate”.

“The BBC did not include Question Time in their requests for leaders participation,” a spokesperson said.

“The SNP was asked for an SNP representative and the SNP’s depute leader will be appearing.

“It is for other parties who they chose to put forward to represent their parties.”

READ MORE: BBC hit by flood of complaints over anti-indy bias in Leaders' Debate

The first BBC Leaders’ Debate took place last month, with another due to be held on May 4. Sturgeon also appeared at last week’s STV programme and last night’s NUS Scotland Election Debate. In addition, Channel 4 will broadcast a debate soon.

However Unionist representatives insisted the SNP leader is trying to “dodge scrutiny”.

Scottish Tory candidate Annie Wells said: “The SNP are at it with their pathetic excuses. As early as March 8, BBC bosses were telling the Scottish Conservatives they wanted all five party leaders. Question Time clearly asked for Nicola Sturgeon and they’ve been forced to accept her lackey instead.”

And a Scottish Labour source claimed Sturgeon, who has frequently been out on the campaign trail, is “hiding from scrutiny from the press and the public”.

The news comes after last night’s student debate, which saw Sturgeon blast Ross for “talking down Scotland’s vaccination programme for political purposes”.

READ MORE: NUS Scotland Election Debate: Nicola Sturgeon tears in to Douglas Ross over vaccine

Ross claimed the rollout had been delivered thanks to the UK and asked: "Over 60% of Scots are now protected by the first dose of the vaccine. What's the highest percentage [of population vaccinated] of an independent country in the EU?"

A heated Sturgeon said the question was irrelevant as Scotland could still have procured vaccines even after independence.

She added: "You're missing the point. It's irrelevant and I'm going to tell you why it's irrelevant, but let me also remind you that at the start of this year, when you were wrongly saying that the vaccination programme in Scotland was running behind the rest of the UK.

"You were claiming that it was the Scottish Government's vaccination programme. Now that it's doing really well you are claiming it's the UK Government's vaccination programme. Make your mind up.”