SCOTTISH Tory leadership candidate Michelle Ballantyne has been condemned for her “Dickensian attitudes” after she advocated “tough love” for benefits claimants.

In an interview in today’s Mail on Sunday, the Tory MSP outlined her plan to cut the number of people that rely on welfare payments.

She vowed “tough love” for claimants, adding: “You don’t raise your children by letting them do as they please, but you also don’t raise them by saying no all the time, so they don’t discover the world and develop aspirations.

“I believe there’s a parallel in this country.”

READ MORE: Michelle Ballantyne joins Scottish Tory leadership contest

SNP MSP Christine Grahame said Ballantyne was “profoundly mistaken”. She commented: “This is yet more out-of-touch nonsense from Michelle Ballantyne, who is never afraid of broadcasting her patronising and Dickensian attitudes towards people on low incomes.

The National: MSP Christine Grahame.

“The latest figures show that unemployment is low in Scotland and lower than in England. But because of Westminster cuts implemented by Ms Ballantyne’s party, many working Scots are struggling to get by.

“If Michelle Ballantyne thinks that ‘tough love’ will help people reliant on food banks, or sort out the shambolic mess that is Universal Credit, then she is profoundly mistaken.”

READ MORE: Scots Tory Ballantyne blasted for attack on benefit claimants

Ballantyne, who is competing with Jackson Carlaw for the party leadership, has previously suggested she would back NHS privatisation, that “people on benefits cannot have as many children as they like” and claimed “there’s no such thing as a bedroom tax”. The Tory has also said she is working on “an alternative to free university education”.

The National: Jackson Carlaw

Grahame added: “Yet again the mask has slipped to reveal what the Tories really think. In previous years, someone with Michelle Ballantyne’s views would have been kept on the backbenches – the fact she is running for the party leadership speaks volumes about the Scottish Tories in 2020.”

Meanwhile, Ballantyne’s campaign team yesterday claimed that young Scottish Tory members were backing her for party leader. According to data posted on social media by her campaign chief, 44% of young Tories are supporting Ballantyne, compared with 36% for Carlaw.