The National:

MICHAEL Gove has been met with sheer disbelief from thousands online after he tweeted a claim about Scottish independence.

Gove, who famously declared that “the people of this country have had enough of experts”, has apparently changed his mind.

A London School of Economics report, which Michael Russell said is “based on unsubstantiated data and absurd assumptions”, recently claimed that independence would cost Scotland more than Brexit.

Gove, as slippery as ever, has decided that these experts are very much worth listening to.

READ MORE: Fact Check: Would independence hit the Scottish economy harder than Brexit?

Sharing an article from the Financial Times on Twitter yesterday, the top Tory wrote simply: “Independence would cost Scotland far more than Brexit, study finds.”

Now, he may not have even written this to be fair, as it is also the FT article’s headline.

Nevertheless, thousands of Twitter users were soon tripping over themselves trying to point out all the levels of hypocrisy in those 10 short words.

Professor and dramatist Dan Rebellato summed up Gove’s position, saying: “This is a bold argument. ‘Scottish Independence will be even shittier than Brexit, which I love and think is brilliant’.”

Political blogger Jon Worth wrote: “*So* much to unpick in a 10-word tweet!

“1️ So Michael, you now agree there is a hefty cost to Brexit?

“2️ This is a report by experts. Do you trust them now?

“3️ If there's a cost to Brexit and indy, and a cost to breaking unions, why do you favour one not the other?”

Others were also quick to point out that Gove’s position on Brexit’s “cost” was a new one.

READ MORE: Kate Forbes slams LSE report on Scottish independence which ‘ignores growth’

Mandrake political diary editor Tim Walker asked: “How much will Brexit cost Scotland, then, Michael, and how many more billions will it ultimately cost the whole of the Union? Has any politician damaged it quite as much as you?”

Peer Andrew Cooper called Gove's tweet a "truth blurt" in which the "Chief Brexit propagandist [was] accidentally acknowledging that Scotland is worse off because of Brexit".

The Tories have previously vehemently denied Brexit would lead to an economic hit, instead saying it will lead “sunlit uplands”.

The Prime Minister went as far as to say that leaving the bloc was akin to finding “El Dorado” for British fishers, a claim those fishers don’t quite seem to agree with.

Responding to Gove’s tweet, former MEP Seb Dance asked: "Is this the British government’s first official public acknowledgement that Brexit has made Scotland worse off?"

SNP MP Angus MacNeil commented: “Gove accidentally admits Brexit is costly. (Forget his future fiction over Scotland - just look at Ireland.)”

The National: Michael Gove dismissed the experts when they didn't agree with his ideologyMichael Gove dismissed the experts when they didn't agree with his ideology

When faced with reports to this newest LSE one indicating the cost of Brexit in the past, Gove dismissed them, saying: “People assume they are predictions when they are simply forecasts and they need to be seen in the round.”

Speaking previously on the economic risks of Brexit, Gove said: "There are economic risks if we leave, economic risks if we remain ... But at some point in the future, it may be the case that global economic factors cause problems.

"An independent Britain will be better able to cope with those strains.”

An independent Scotland however would fail on day one, if the Tories are to be believed.

Commenting on Gove's recent tweet, James Felton wrote: "Not sure 'Scottish independence: even shitter than the Brexit we dragged you through' should be the main slogan."

TV personalities also had their say, with former Bake Off host Sue Perkins writing: “Brexit now officially a cost....”

Comedian Hal Cruttenden quipped: “I think you’ll find it’s called ‘Taking Back Control’ Michael…”, while Marcus Brigstocke added: “Bare faced effrontery and f*cking gall chokes nation, study finds…”

Others felt much the same as Brigstoke, with editor and columnist Ian Dunt writing: “Sweet mother of Christ the f*cking gall of these people.”

Tom Peck, the Independent’s political sketch writer, asked: “Oh my god. This is actually real?”, while the Herald’s former business correspondent Kevin Scott added: “Alexa, show me the most ridiculous tweet ever posted.”

Professor Chris Grey noted: “It seems that a 'Brexit' is now the officially recognized unit of the damage a country can do itself. (Not the metric unit, of course, but our own world-beating one).”

Political commentator Femi Oluwole added: “The worst thing about this tweet?

“For 5 years, the government's own experts have told them that every Brexit scenario will make the British people poorer, and the only time they're willing to admit that, is when it can be used for political advantage to threaten Scotland.”

Referencing the "Brexit bus", he added: "How can Brexit save us £350million/week and also cost us money?"

Journalist and author Robert Hutton offered some advice. “Kids,” he wrote, “live your life with the blissful self-confidence of this tweet.”