BORIS Johnson has taken a swipe at the SNP's Westminster leader Ian Blackford during his Tory conference speech.

The Prime Minister mocked Mr Blackford's previous claim that he was "just a simple crofter with 10 acres".

Mr Blackford, the MP for Ross, Skye and Lochaber, worked as an investment banker before becoming an MP and still has lucrative outside interests.

Addressing the Tory conference in Manchester, Mr Johnson outlined his plan to "level up" areas of the UK and ensure wealth and opportunities are spread evenly.

The Prime Minister spoke of the urgent need to "plug the gaps in our infrastructure that are still holding so many people and communities back".

He said that when he became Tory leader only 7 per cent of households had gigabit broadband, but by the new year this will have risen to 68%.

Mr Johnson added: "For years the SNP leader at Westminster, Ian Blackford, has been telling the Commons that he is nothing but a humble crofter on the isle of Skye.

"Now we have fibre-optic broadband of a very high quality we can inspect the library, or is it perhaps the billiard room, of Ian Blackford’s croft and that is levelling up in action."

Elsewhere, Mr Johnson said the UK's national infrastructure "is way behind some of our key competitors".

He said transport is "one of the supreme leveller-uppers" and pledged to "restore those sinews of the union that have been allowed to atrophy – the A1 north of Berwick and on into Scotland; the A 75 in Scotland that is so vital for the links between Northern Ireland and the rest of the country".