Reform’s Scottish leader called ‘tone deaf’ after boasting about his houses, cars and yachts
The leader of Reform UK in Scotland, Malcolm Offord, has been dismissed as “tone deaf” and “entitled” after he boasted in a televised election debate about the number of cars, houses and boats he owned.Responding to the row on Wednesday morning, the SNP leader, John Swinney, proposed that all party leaders should publish their tax returns before the election on 7 May.Offord, a multimillionaire financier and former Conservative life peer who defected to Reform and was announced as the party’s first Scottish leader in January, told the STV debate on Tuesday evening: “I went to London 40 years ago with £2,000 of debt.“Full of ambition, I worked hard and I was successful.Today, I own six houses, five cars and six boats.
In a 40-year business career I’ve employed hundreds of thousands of people and paid £45m in tax.”Offord made the remarks during a section of the programme where the six party leaders questioned one another.He asked the co-leader of the Scottish Greens, Ross Greer: “In your Scotland, do you want more people like me, or fewer people like me?”Greer replied: “Fewer people like you,” adding: “I’m glad you’ve finally admitted how many homes you have, Lord Offord.”Offord, a yachting enthusiast who also collects classic cars and recently bought a mansion on the banks of Loch Lomond for £1.6m without a mortgage, has previously refused to say how wealthy he is, claiming that is a private matter.
If he is elected to Holyrood, Offord will have to produce a detailed list of any shareholdings and properties he owns in his register of interest.Property records indicate his other homes in the UK include a flat in a prosperous district of north Edinburgh, one in his home town of Greenock and a flat in Knightsbridge, London.Greer continued: “I think at this point in the debate, it’s worth pointing out there are three times as many holiday homes and empty properties in this country as there are homeless children.”He told Offord: “You don’t need six homes, you don’t even need two homes, everyone just needs a home to live in.“Surely if we’re to tackle the housing emergency, the super-super-rich elite individuals like you should be giving up some of those homes so people who desperately need a roof over their head actually have somewhere to live.
”Later in the debate, the final televised clash of the campaign ahead of the election, the Labour leader, Anas Sarwar, called Offord “entitled”,Sarwar said: “The idea that he will stand up for working people is for the birds,”Speaking to media at a campaign event in Edinburgh, Swinney said: “I thought it was a revelation that was tone deaf,Lord Offord was essentially bragging about his wealth and I don’t think that is the way to engage with voters,”Swinney indicated he would be “very happy” to publish his own tax return, and see other party leaders do so before 7 May.
Offord drew criticism from opponents earlier in the campaign for missing a weekend’s campaigning to sail his yacht Braveheart in a regatta race in the Channel.At the time, Offord laughed off the criticism, saying: “I’m trying to take this seriously, I mean heaven forbid a man has a hobby, right?”Stella Rooney, a spokesperson for the tenants’ union Living Rent, said: “When the majority of people are struggling to afford rent or mortgage costs or are stuck in temporary accommodation, it is hard to believe that anyone owning multiple homes would understand anything about the housing crisis, let alone have any sort of plan to fix it.”Anti-poverty and housing campaigners in Scotland privately expressed frustration that they were not able to respond directly to the remarks because of strict pre-election rules.On a recent BBC Scotcast podcast, Chris Birt, the Scotland director of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, spoke about the importance of sharing wealth in Scotland, saying: “It’s not a sustainable position where people can have multiple homes where there are people in our country who have none.”Reform UK has been asked whether Offord will publish his tax returns and confirm where his homes are located, but the party has not yet responded.
Other Scottish party leaders have released their tax records during previous election campaigns, but it is not done regularly.In January, Offord refused to release his returns, saying: “I want to think about that.”
US gas prices hit $4.23 high as Hormuz fears drive oil surge
Average US gas prices have hit a new high at $4.23 a gallon, their highest since 2022 and a record since the start of the war with Iran, according to the motor club AAA.The price of Brent crude, the benchmark that influences the price of gasoline in the US, now stands at $114.60 a barrel, up nearly 25% from the recent low since mid-April. US gas prices a year ago averaged $3
Jerome Powell says he’ll stay on Fed board after central bank keeps interest rates unchanged in defiance of Trump
The US Federal Reserve chair, Jerome Powell, is staying on the central bank’s rate-setting board after his term as chair ends in May, a contentious move that signals continued uncertainty at the Fed.Powell made the announcement after the Fed board left interest rates unchanged for the third time this year on Wednesday, despite Donald Trump’s continued demands for interest rate cuts.Before Wednesday, Powell initially said he will step down from the board when the White House’s investigations into renovations at the Fed are “well and truly over with transparency and finality”. Powell’s term ends on 15 May.While he is “encouraged” by the justice department dropping its investigation, Powell noted that there are “remaining steps in the process” that he is watching carefully
Musk laments being a ‘fool’ for funding OpenAI on day two of court testimony
After a dramatic first day of opening statements and testimony from Elon Musk in his case against Sam Altman and OpenAI, the trial continues on Wednesday with a cross examination of the Tesla CEO. Musk began his second day of testimony by repeating the accusation that Altman “stole a charity” and would endanger humanity with AI multiple times. OpenAI’s defense attorneys will have the chance to press the world’s richest man on his allegations.Peripheral to the legal showdown, the court was packed on Wednesday with a mix of media and eager young men who lined up before dawn to get a glimpse – and a picture – of Musk. Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers at one point threatened that if observers did not stop taking photos and videos, a violation of the court’s rules, she would shut down an overflow room for watching the proceedings
Maryland becomes first state to ban surveillance pricing in grocery stores
Maryland has become the first state in the US to ban surveillance pricing in grocery stores.Maryland’s law bans grocers and third-party delivery services from using a person’s personal data to set higher prices. Wes Moore, the governor, signed the measure into law on Tuesday. “At a time when technology can predict what we need, when we need it, when we’ll pay for it and also – when we’ll pay more for it, and at a time when we’re watching how big companies are then using these analytics against us to make record profits, Maryland is not just pushing back. Maryland is pushing forward because we are going to protect our people,” Moore said at the bill signing ceremony
Revamped Maroons undergo radical reset to take 2026 State of Origin fight to Blues | Jack Snape
Queensland’s greatest player has been jettisoned and backup has been called in from across the ditch. The side has a new-look halves pairing, as many as five State of Origin debutants, and a new coach.Against New South Wales – the holders of the Women’s Origin shield after their comprehensive victory in 2025 – the Maroons have undergone a radical reset. Back to the drawing board? Try again. New coach Nathan Cross is on his way to Officeworks, imagining a whole new fit-out
Sticking with same players for Women’s T20 World Cup leaves England in a twist | Raf Nicholson
Insanity, they say, is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. England’s head coach, Charlotte Edwards, is perfectly sane, but on Tuesday she announced a squad for the home T20 World Cup that starts on 12 June almost exactly the same as the one that surrendered the Ashes, by a score of 16-0, 15 months ago. The optics are dreadful.For anyone who has followed England closely over the past year, the conservatism of Edwards and her selection panel comes as no surprise. Last summer, the main selection news was that Kate Cross – who did not play in the Ashes due to injury – was discarded
Obesity a key factor for rising cancer rates in young people in England, study finds
Stress from racism may help explain why black women more likely to die in childbirth, study finds
Earlier specialised care could prevent 10,000 miscarriages a year, UK study finds
Public toilets: more than a matter of convenience | Letters
First teenage suicide linked to domestic abuse recorded in England and Wales
Call for UK gambling reform after ‘generous and caring’ woman takes her own life