Third Reform UK candidate in Scotland found to have backed independence

A third Reform UK candidate in Scotland has admitted voting for independence in the 2014 referendum amid warnings the party will help the SNP win seats in next week’s election.

Kris Callander, the Reform candidate in Gordon and Buchan, Aberdeenshire, said he had not always been a “hardline Unionist” as he had backed separation in the referendum.

His disclosure came after Richard Tice, the party chairman, admitted he did not know how many of its candidates in Scotland backed independence.

He said Reform had been let down by its vetting company after a series of disclosures about candidates with extreme views, including one who praised as “brilliant” Hitler’s ability to “inspire people into action”.

It previously emerged that David Kirkwood, the party’s deputy chairman in Scotland and a candidate in a Tory-held seat, voted SNP in every election until 2019 and backed independence in the 2014 referendum.

He is standing in Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale, the seat being defended by Tory David Mundell, the former Scottish Secretary.

The Courier also reported that a candidate in Dundee, Vicky McCann, previously supported independence and claimed the 2014 referendum was “corrupt” to prevent a Yes vote.

But a tracker poll published by Redfield and Wilton Strategies said support for Reform in Scotland had doubled to eight per cent since the start of this month.

Nigel Farage’s party appeared to have benefited from a collapse in support for the Tories, who polled at only 11 per cent, down six points.

Labour had 38 per cent support, down one point, while support for the SNP was up three points to 32 per cent.

Gordon and Buchan is a Tory-held seat that the SNP is targeting. The Conservatives have warned that Mr Callander standing for Reform will split the Right-wing vote and risk an SNP victory.