A SCOTTISH Tory leadership candidate has defended the presence of a sex row former MP at her campaign launch as she called for lower taxes on business and high earners.

Michelle Ballantyne said she valued Ross Thomson’s opinion and he had “always been a friend” as he sat in the front row of her launch in Edinburgh this morning.

The SNP called Mr Thomson's involvement "seriously unwise" and said it raised questions about Ms Ballantyne's "political judgment".

Mr Thomson stood down as a Tory candidate at the general election after a Labour MP publicly accused him of groping him in a Commons bar.

READ MORE: Tory MP Ross Thomson speaks out after quitting over 'grope' claim 

Mr Thomson said not running for re-election in Aberdeen South had been “the hardest decision of my life”, although he had lost the confidence of his local party.

It followed Paul Sweeney, then Labour MP for Glasgow North East, reporting Mr Thomson to Westminster’s standards watchdog about an alleged incident in October 2018.

Mr Sweeney claimed Mr Thomson had been extremely drunk when he grabbed him through his clothes in the Strangers’ Bar at Westminster leaving him “paralysed” with shock.

Mr Thomson denied wrongdoing and claimed he was the victim of a “political smear”.

Ms Ballantyne, the underdog in the race to replace Ruth Davidson as Scottish Tory leader, launched her campaign with an appeal to working-class voters who had never voted Tory before, saying she understood their lives and wanted to help them get on.

Asked about Mr Thomson’s role, the South of Scotland MSP said: “I’ve known Ross for a long time. We shared a platform way back when we were both councillors.

“I value Ross’s opinion. He’s always been a friend.”

READ MORE: Tory MP Ross Thomson steps down after groping allegations made by Labour MP Paul Sweeney

Asked about the sexual assault claim that stopped him standing in the election, she said: “I think you should read the report that’s coming out on the investigation.

“I believe it’s a Westminster investigation. There’s been a full investigation. I work on the truth of what has been proven, not on speculation and spurious untruth.”

Mr Sweeney called Mr Thomson’s presence at the event “disappointing”. 

He said: “I haven't had any communication from the Parliamentary Commissioner  for Standards to say the investigation has concluded or a ruling has been reached. 

“As far as I'm concerned, the incident is still under live investigation and the Commissioner has still to make a judgement. I completed my evidence statement just before Christmas.

“It strikes me as quite obnoxious that he [Mr Thomson] hasn't been suspended as a member of their party pending the outcome of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards investigation, given the nature of the allegations.”

An SNP spokesperson said: "It is seriously unwise to have Ross Thomson so heavily involved in a leadership campaign when an investigation into his behaviour is yet to report.

"This will only compound questions over Ms Ballantyne's political judgement."

After the launch, Mr Thomson was asked if his support could backfire on Ms Ballantyne.

He said: “I'm supporting her as a private citizen and I'm entitled to support who I want. I genuinely think she's the right person."

He refused to be drawn on the potential findings in the report, but said it had left him "in limbo" since standing down as an MP.

The favourite in the leadership context, the current acting leader Jackson Carlaw, last week promised to lower income tax for middle income Scots if he was in power.

Those earning between £27,000 and £43,430 pay up to £150 more than their equivalents in the rest of the UK, while those earning up to £45,000 pay up to £500 more.

However Ms Ballantyne, who has a £250,000 stake in a family sculpture and engraving business, said she would prioritise tax cuts for businesses.  

She said: “I believe that the first step is to ensure that businesses thrive in Scotland. 

“Without effective employment across the country, we won’t have taxes to collect from people who are employed, so the first thing we need to address is tax on business and make sure they are able to provide good, stable employment.

“Once we’ve done that, and we have the tax-take coming in, I think we should look at levelling up taxes.”

She said higher income tax relative to south of the border could lead to long-term problems attracting the right staff to Scotland.

She said: “We will find it increasingly difficult to persuade people that this is the right place to come and be a consultant in our health service or to be a senior teacher or be a senior police officer.

“So I think if we’re going to attract the best engineers, the best thinkers, the lecturers, the best research people, yes, we do need to be competitive.

“But we have to balance it and the first thing to do is make sure that we can attract people to businesses and we have the wealth creation that will support tax reduction.”

Ms Ballantyne also back tax cuts for the wealthy, who currently pay 46p in the pound over £150,000 in Scotland, but 45p south of the border.

Asked if she would like to cut the top rate if economic circumstances allowed, she said: “Yes, I think ultimately if we’re going to compete on an equal playing field for the best talent.

“Remember, when we talk about best talent and high earners, it’s not just about them earning and coming here. It’s about what they bring to people in our society.

“It’s about what they bring to the learning and development of those below them. 

“If we don’t have the top people, our people below them in the system are not going to learn the best, the latest, the most modern, the most effective way to deal with things.”

She went on: “I think we should aim for at least the level playing field. If we can deliver with lower taxation and beat them, and attract the better people, I would love to do that. But we have to be realistic. For me the priority is delivering effective services on the ground.”

Ms Ballantyne, who has not been endorsed by any other MSP, also took a swipe at Mr Carlaw, saying the party needed more than a safe pair of hands for the 2021 election.

She said: “Jackson has been a safe pair of hands in the interim. But I think we need more than a safe pair of hands now, and the election we’ve just been through would probably underpin my reasoning for this.

“If we’re to have any chance of delivering the things that we believe in, and make those changes for people across the country, we need to win.

“And to win we have to change people’s minds, and to change people’s minds we have to move forward. So we can’t just be a safe pair of hands. 

“We can’t just keep doing what we’ve done. So I believe we need to move on.”

She also said she would like to end free university tuition because it had led to a cap on places at Scottish universities, but refused to say what her new policy was.

She said: “I think tuition fees do need looking at. They were brought in to broaden the opportunity, particularly among the more deprived areas, and young people who never got the opportunity to go to university. I feel that has failed. 

“I’ve been looking very carefully at alternatives. One that is not about completely free tuition, one that is not about charging people. I think there is a better way forward and I’ve been working on something I think could work to enable equal opportunity for all people.”

Asked what it was, she said: “I’m not prepared to put it out there yet. I’m testing some of my theories to make sure they actually are robust. I do believe that one of the problems we’ve had in this country is that a lot of policies are made on the hoof.”