Penny Mordaunt utterly destroys SNP in brilliant Commons takedown

She hit out at the party for allowing "Victorian diseases" to return to "certain cities in Scotland", noting that "Glasgow's rat problem is now so bad it is precluding bin men actually accessing certain streets as it is too dangerous for them".

This came after the SNP's Deidre Brock asked the Leader of the Commons what she learned from her trip to Scotland.

Addressing the House of Commons, Mordaunt said: "Well, I have genuinely missed these exchanges where the Honourable Lady blames everyone else except the Scottish Government which is one of the most powerful devolved administrations in this world.

"But she invites me to tell this House what I've learned in my very pleasant trips to Scotland over the summer.

"I did learn Scotland has slower economic growth than England, I was shocked to learn Victorian diseases have actually returned to certain cities in Scotland, such as rickets, that Glasgow's rat problem is now so bad it is precluding bin men actually accessing certain streets as it is too dangerous for them, I discovered that the bill to Scottish taxpayers for the smelting business debacle stands at £32million, I discovered that £33m that was ring-fenced for Scottish farmers has gone AWOL.

"I also learned that the Scottish auditors have only been able to give a qualified sign-off to the SNP's accounts.

"I toured other parts of the UK as well; in Manchester... I discovered the Manchester police have been forced to issue a crime reference number following a complaint about the SNP giving constituency seats for cash.

"I also learned the Scottish Programme for Government announced this week has a billion pound black hole."

Mordaunt concluded: “I discovered that the bill to Scottish taxpayers of the smelting business debacle stands at £32 million. I discovered that £33 million that was ringfenced for Scottish farmers has gone awol.”

The GMB Scotland union warned that the issues were a "severe health and safety crisis" for refuse workers, warning that the streets are "just the tip of the iceberg".

They said that refuse workers had noted an increase in rats across the whole city.

Glasgow City Council is said to be aware of the issues. It confirmed it is working with local housing associations to tackle the problem.

SNP MPs hit back at Mordaunt for the rant, with one saying she is "more like an internet meme than a cabinet minister".

MP for Glasgow South Stewart McDonald said Mordaunt was pandering to “angry corners of the Unionist Tory internet”.

He told Scottish outlet the National: “Another pre-scripted rant that makes Penny Mordaunt seem more like an internet meme than a cabinet minister, and all to try and keep her name warm for the upcoming Tory leadership contest.

“Having got carried away with heroically holding a sword – about the only achievement she’ll be remembered for – she now thinks her job is to trend on Twitter, so it’s no real surprise that she trades in disinformation and junk news to satisfy the angry corners of the Unionist Tory internet.

“The truth is that the leader of the house is just another decaying minister, in a decaying Government, that Scots cannot wait to see the back of. I look forward to seeing that trending at the ballot box."