The SNP'S Pete Wishart was last night called on to apologise for alleging Scots in England were being "abused and berated" because of poisonous Metropolitan myths about public spending in Scotland and the West Lothian question.

The SNP'S Pete Wishart was last night called on to apologise for alleging Scots in England were being "abused and berated" because of poisonous Metropolitan myths about public spending in Scotland and the West Lothian question.

Murdo Fraser MSP, the Scottish Tories' deputy leader, branded the Perth MP an "embarrassment to his constituents".

Mr Wishart, the Nationalists' constitutional spokesman at Westminster, had attacked what he termed the "hysterical and nonsensical campaign" by the Conservatives and their tabloid supporters.

As reported in The Herald yesterday, Mr Wishart claimed to have heard "reports of Scots being abused" on the back of "Metropolitan myths" about Scotland and recounted how he had heard of an English shopkeeper handing back change to a Scottish customer, saying: "I'm sick of handing money over to you Scots."

Last night, Mr Fraser said: "Pete Wishart just makes himself look foolish, making wild claims such as these, for which there is no foundation."

The Tory front bencher said if his Nationalist opponent had bothered to check his facts with the Equality and Human Rights Commission before "shooting his mouth off" he would have found that it had received not a single complaint of racism against Scots south of the border. Instead, argued Mr Fraser, he took one unsubstantiated anecdote and tried to spin it into a national phenomenon."

He added: "Pete Wishart has proved himself to be an embarrassment to his constituents in Perth & North Perthshire. He should withdraw his ridiculous comments and apologise for the offence caused."