Once poles apart, they are now shoulder to shoulder.

The battle to keep Britain in the European Union has brought together the unlikely campaign bed-fellows of former SNP spin doctor Kevin Pringle and Frank Roy, the ex-Labour whip who helped manage the Better Together campaign.

Mr Pringle, who now works for the PR company Charlotte Street Partners, will head the communications support for the Scottish arm of Britain Stronger in Europe.

Mr Roy, who lost his Motherwell and Wishaw seat to the SNP in May last yearthe Nationalists’ General Election landslide, will be the campaign’s director for Scotland.

Its executive director Will Straw, son of the former Labour foreign secretary Jack Straw, said: “Frank and Kevin have both served their different parties well and will serve Scotland well by working together in an inclusive Stronger In campaign.”

He added: “We are stronger, safer and better off in Europe.

“Scotland has an important role to play in helping to achieve that outcome whenever David Cameron calls the referendum.”

Mr Pringle said: “In the independence referendum, both the Yes and No campaigns stressed the importance of European membership and, therefore, we can bring people together in Scotland on what is a widely shared position of wanting to keep the benefits of remaining in the EU.

“Indeed, a successful In campaign can be an important element in helping to bridge the divide of the independence ref- erendum.”

Mr Roy added: “Just as there are powerful business and economic reasons to keep our EU membership, social Europe initiatives have safeguarded rights for working people that most people in Scotland and across the UK want to keep.”