KEIR Starmer’s pledge to follow in the footsteps of Tony Blair alongside his praise of Margaret Thatcher should serve as a "warning sign" to Scotland, the SNP have said.

The party has insisted Scotland will continue to suffer under what looks likely to be Labour-led Government in London given Starmer has vowed to look to his predecessor for inspiration.

In a pre-General Election warning, Alison Thewliss has insisted while the damage the Tories have done to the economy and living standards is “unforgivable”, the “lack of vision” from the UK Labour Party will be equally as hurtful to Scotland and the country’s values will remain under threat.

Thewliss said: “Westminster is, and has always been, out of touch with Scotland.

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“The Westminster parties either don’t understand or don’t care about our values - whichever it is, it’s gone on for too long and people deserve better.

“While the damage the Tories have caused to Scotland’s people is unforgivable, so to is the lack of vision from Keir Starmer’s Labour Party. 

“When we see Sir Keir praising the likes of Tony Blair and Margaret Thatcher, it is a warning sign.”

Throughout his time as prime minister, the SNP outlined Blair oversaw cuts to disability benefits while his party told unemployed tenants to “find a job or lose your council house” in 2008.

Then housing minister Caroline Flint said tenants should be made to sign "commitment contracts" pledging to seek employment.

Blair’s home secretary Jack Straw also stripped refugees of their benefits in 1999, Harriet Harman pushed through benefit cuts for single mothers in 1997, and Labour’s Alan Milburn told the NHS to take on the private sector in 2000.

Blair also welcomed 11 private healthcare providers into the “NHS family” in 2006.

In 2010, Labour’s Alistair Darling said they would “cut deeper than Margaret Thatcher” while Gordon Brown, Blair’s chancellor, admitted that year he was to blame for the credit crunch.

Thewliss said these examples and others show Labour are not going to fix Westminster at the next General Election.

She added: “History shows us that Westminster is unfixable - whether its the Tory or Labour, Scotland’s values are under threat and we must do all we can to make our voice heard.”

Blair praised Starmer for "rescuing the party" last year from "the brink of extinction", which led the SNP's Mhairi Black to say Blairites are "well and truly back in charge" of the party.

Last week, Starmer was challenged to “sever all links” between his party and the think tank set up by Blair - the Institute for Global Change - which has been paid to advise countries with poor human rights records.