Alex Cole-Hamilton defends ‘faked interviews with journalist’

The leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats has denied trying to con the public with “fake news” social media videos in which he pretends to be interviewed by a journalist. Weekly content produced by the party shows Alex Cole-Hamilton leaving the Holyrood chamber after first minister’s questions, before apparently being interrupted by a reporter who begins asking him about his contributions. Most commented 1 New Kemi Badenoch woos Middle England back to the ‘no-nonsense’ centre ground Politics 197 comments 2 ‘Without violence, no one pays attention’: France returns to barricades Europe 75 comments 3 Deadly strike on Ukraine homes ‘was birthday gift for Putin’ Russia-Ukraine war 57 comments 4 Christmas cards become ‘winter cards’ at primary school Scotland 23 comments In fact, the person posing the questions is a Scottish Lib Dem spin doctor. Cole-Hamilton often pretends to be oblivious to the presence of his staffer, who then calls him over and asks “softball” questions on camera. Top stories 1 How American billionaires are shaping the future of warfare Technology 2 George Clooney, newly French, plans Italian restaurant in Provence Europe The scenes appear designed to look like a real interaction between a politician and a political journalist. Reporters often approach MSPs nearby to ask questions and then upload the footage to social media. Cole-Hamilton, who has repeatedly condemned disinformation and propaganda from outlets such as the Kremlin-backed RT, denied that his party had become a “fake news outlet”. Advertisement “It’s not intended to con people,” he said. “People aren’t stupid, they are up for colourful and novel ways of presenting information. Top stories 1 The key takeaways from Kemi Badenoch’s conference speech Politics 2 Southampton’s Tonda Eckert escapes ban for ‘Spygate’ scandal Football 3 Barclays traders’ convictions quashed after Supreme Court ruling Companies & Markets 4 Give every child a stake in Britain’s future Economics 5 The remarkable Test recall of Australia batsman who beat cancer Cricket “One of the great things about having so many more MSPs is we’ve got a much bigger staff team, and they’ve come up with fresh, exciting, engaging ideas. “And my goodness, it’s getting hundreds of thousands of views, in front of eyeballs we’d never had a right to before. There’s always a serious message, we’re not pretending to be a fake news outlet.” Cole-Hamilton at Portobello Beach in April Alamy When it was put to him that the videos were clearly designed to look like an interaction with a journalist, he said they were “not intended to mislead anybody” and were instead part of an updated social media strategy which would stay in place. Presiding officer tells Swinney to answer questions twice a week Advertisement “It’s intended to change the way we do our social media,” he said. “Put some balls in the air, throw some stuff at the wall, see what sticks. And my goodness, this is sticking.” The Scottish Liberal Democrats’ one-day conference will be held in Edinburgh this weekend. Under Cole-Hamilton, who became leader in 2021, the party more than doubled their tally of MSPs to 10 at the Holyrood election in May. Cole-Hamilton with the Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey, right, and the Edinburgh Northern MSP Sanne Dijkstra-Downie, left, after the election in May Jane Barlow/PA Wire They are seen as the party most likely to strike a budget deal with the SNP government. Cole-Hamilton said John Swinney “did not want any part” of an agreement with the Scottish Greens, a party he said were “tacking to the extremes”. Magnus Linklater: Why Scottish politicians should be hit with a mobile phone ban Advertisement However, he has faced grumblings over his leadership in recent weeks, including claims that Christine Jardine, the Edinburgh West MP, was being forced out of her seat to make way for Kevin Lang, a local councillor and Cole-Hamilton ally. Jardine, 65, blamed internal “tension” for her decision to stand down at the next general election and said that some had questioned whether she was too old to serve another term. Cole-Hamilton denied being part of any plot to oust her and dismissed questions about his leadership, which other senior party figures have raised. One source claimed a “campaign” was being formed to back a potential rival. Christine Jardine at Westminster UK PARLIAMENT Cole-Hamilton described himself as “one of the most successful leaders the Scottish party has ever had” and said he was “just getting started”. He added that he was not aware of anyone attacking Jardine over her age and it would be “deplorable” if they did. Advertisement While he admitted that Lang was one of his “best friends”, he said there had been no stitch up to secure him Jardine’s seat. He said local members had voted for an open selection process, rather than confirming Jardine automatically to run again, and he had no involvement in the process. Kevin Lang “It’s just not possible to engineer, nor would I want to, a secret ballot of Liberal Democrat members in my constituency,” he said. “I’ve seen and read all these reports of manoeuvring and coups and the rest of it. But we have these processes for a reason, because they are absolutely watertight and incorruptible. And I wouldn’t seek to corrupt it anyway. Scotland newsletter Your weekend briefing from the Scotland edition of The Times and The Sunday Times. Sign up with one click You’ve successfully signed up to the Scotland newsletter Explore our newsletters An error occurred. Please use the link below. Scotland newsletter Explore our newsletters “But Kevin’s got as much right as anybody to run for nomination… but he’d have to persuade the hundreds of members in West Edinburgh he’s the best for the job. I will have no role in that.” A spokesman for the SNP said: “Everyone knows Alex Cole-Hamilton has a high opinion of himself, but Scottish Liberal Democrat Instagram videos typically gather around two likes, not hundreds of thousands. Advertisement “Rather than cringeworthy social media posts, Scottish voters would rather Alex Cole-Hamilton filmed himself explaining why his most respected MP was forced out because of her age.”