The SNP has made a renewed demand for a general election after Rishi Sunak was today crowned the latest leader of the Conservative party.
Ian Blackford, the Nationalist leader at Westminster, insisted the former chancellor had "no mandate" from the public to take charge of the country.
Sunak won a vote of Conservative MPs to replace Liz Truss in Downing Street and will officially become Prime Minister once he meets the King.
The Tories have burned through two leaders since winning the last general election in 2019. Boris Johnson was forced to resign in June in the wake of Partygate while Liz Truss lasted barely a month in charge before announcing her departure last week.
Blackford said: "The Tories cannot be allowed to impose a third Prime Minister without a general election - voters must get a say and the SNP is determined to ensure they do.
"The Tory government had no mandate to trash the UK economy with its disastrous budget. And it has no mandate to install yet another leader who will impose devastating austerity cuts - making households pay through their teeth for Tory mistakes.
"No one voted for this. The only reason the Tories are running scared of democracy is because they fear the verdict of the people. There's no better indication of that than the polling in Scotland, which shows voting SNP could wipe the Tories out completely.
"The decisions that are made in the weeks and months ahead will be hugely significant and will impact the economy, public services and household budgets for years to come. Voters must get a say on what course they want to take - instead of having damaging decisions imposed against our will.
"The SNP will continue to put maximum pressure on Tory MPs to hold an election. And, I've written to Keir Starmer making clear SNP MPs will back a vote of no confidence in the Tory government, if he tables one this week.
"The Tory economic crisis and constant chaos at Westminster shows exactly why Scotland needs independence, so we can get rid of Westminster Tory governments for good."
Patrick Harvie, Scottish Greens co-leader, said there was "no doubt" a general election should be called.
He said: "Rishi Sunak’s appointment will be music to the ears of his super rich friends, but, for millions of people in Scotland and beyond it will be devastating.
"The Tories have stepped into a time machine and come out in 2010. The last thing we need is yet another multi-millionaire Tory Prime Minister looking the other way while millions suffer and attacking the services that we all rely on.
"They crashed the economy and now they will try to make the most vulnerable pay for it. That is what they do every time they get a sniff of power. That is what Rishi Sunak did when he was Chancellor and he cut Universal Credit by £1000 a year.
"He may have eventually withdrawn his support from Boris Johnson, but he stood right with him when he ignored the worst cost crisis for generations and when he delivered a disastrous Brexit.
"In 2014, we were told that a No vote was the only way to secure our economic stability. Since then we have had four Prime Ministers, each of them even worse than the one before. Rishi Sunak will be the fifth.
"Scotland didn’t vote for any of them. There is no doubt that we need an election, and the chance to remove this chaotic government. But we also need a fair and democratic referendum."
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