A South Scotland MSP gave a bizarre reply to a moment of laughter from opposition benches in Holyrood.

Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, was giving a statement in the Scottish parliament chamber on September 21 when he was met with a chorus of laughter from the opposition benches.

Mr Whittle had asked Deputy First Minister Shona Robison about comments from council leaders questioning the achievability of net zero targets - just as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak rolled back on some of his key environmental pledges. The PM delayed the ban on sales of petrol and diesel cars to 2035 and also put back the time at which people need to replace gas boilers with heat pumps to 2035.

The question provoked mocking laughter from some SNP MSPs - prompting Whittle to angrily mimic their reactions.

The Scottish Conservatives politican then replied with his own bout of sarcastic laughter, as can be seen in the video from media outlet Radio Clyde News below:

The former athlete has been a member of the Scottish Parliament for the South Scotland region since 2016.

Troon-born Brian won a gold metal in the 4 x 400 metres relay at both the 1986 European Athletics Championships and the 1994 European Athletics Championships.

He also competed in the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.

Photo/video from Radio Clyde News