THE Scottish Government has criticised Tory plans to hang portraits of the King in public buildings like schools and nurseries, with the First Minister saying it was not a good use of taxpayers' money.
Plans to hang a picture of King Charles in buildings including council buildings, courts, and prisons were revealed in the Sunday Mail, with £8 million of public cash reportedly set aside for the project.
Asked about the plans at an event in Glasgow on Monday, First Minister Humza Yousaf said: "I just think that it is not the appropriate use of public money from the UK Government, to demand that we spend time and effort giving them details of every single school, I think they asked for, so on and so forth.
"And of course the cost of these portraits I think is not the best use of public money during a cost of living crisis."
The National understands the Scottish Government has complied with a request from their UK counterparts to provide information on public buildings which would be eligible for the portrait.
SNP culture minister Christina McKelvie (below) also criticised the plans, telling the paper they were a waste of taxpayers’ money during a cost of living crisis.
She said: “In the midst of a cost of living crisis, we do not believe portraits of His Majesty are an appropriate use of civil service time or of public funds.
The Scottish Government has been asked whether it intends to block buildings from accessing the portraits.
The plans were also met with fury from the Scottish Greens, the SNP’s coalition partners in Holyrood.
Ross Greer, the party’s education spokesperson, told the paper: “At a time when the UK Government is cutting Scotland’s budget and telling us there’s no money to fund basic public services, they can apparently find millions of pounds for a bizarre scheme that would look more at home in North Korea.
“If Westminster wants to boost support for Charles Windsor, maybe they should end the exemptions he and his family enjoy from everything from inheritance tax to anti-discrimination laws.”
Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden (above) has reportedly asked the Scottish Government for an “exhaustive” list of buildings that would qualify for a portrait.
A Scottish Government source told this paper civil servants had complied the Cabinet Office with the information sought.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: "Scottish Ministers responded formally to the Deputy Prime Minister’s request making clear that it would fall to UK officials to undertake work on portraits of His Majesty the King.”
Donald Cameron, the Scottish Tories' constitution spokesperson, told The Telegraph that it would be "petty" if the Edinburgh administration were to block the plans.
“It would be remarkably petty, even by the SNP’s standards, to refuse to pass on the details of public buildings that would be eligible – at no cost to themselves – for a portrait of the King,” he said.
“It has always been entirely normal for schools, hospitals and government offices to have a picture of the monarch. And no one is being forced to take one, they’re simply being given the option.”
And an SNP source told the Sunday Mail the party would "not have any part of it".
They said: "They want to hang a picture of one of the wealthiest men in the country over the heads of children in the poorest communities in Scotland. We will not have any part of it.
“It is ironic that this plan comes from the same Tories who are complaining about the civil service working on independence.
"That work is backed by the democratic mandate of the people of Scotland and yet they demand it stop.
“Yet here they are demanding Scottish civil servants spend their time organising thousands of pictures of the King. The hypocrisy is stunning."
A UK Government spokesperson said: “It is right that public authorities, as part of the fabric of our nation, have the opportunity, should they wish, to commemorate the accession of His Majesty The King and reflect the new era in our history.
“To mark the Coronation, public authorities throughout the United Kingdom will be able to apply for a free portrait of His Majesty The King to celebrate the new reign.”
