First Minister John Swinney accused Reform of having “brought racism” into Holyrood with a debate on the wearing of the burka.
The SNP leader said he “deplored” the debate, brought forward by Reform UK’s Scottish deputy leader Thomas Kerr.
The motion calls on the Scottish Government to set out its “assessment of the potential benefits of introducing further restrictions on full-face coverings in public places” – suggesting such a move could benefit public safety and community cohesion.
Mr Swinney however took aim at Reform for choosing to bring such a motion for debate, telling MSPs: “I have served in this Parliament since 1999, I have answered questions in here for many years from this podium.
“Not once have I been asked to ban the burka or to divide communities in our country, but I have been invited to do since May, when that lot came into this Parliament.”
To applause from fellow MSPs, the SNP leader insisted that that “speaks for itself”.
His comments came after Reform’s Scottish leader Malcolm Offord challenged the First Minister to condemn the “racist rhetoric and blatant antisemitism” of the Green Party, and to bar Scottish Green co-leader Gillian Mackay from the SNP conference in Aberdeen next week, where she is due to speak at a fringe event.
Lord Offord raised the issue at First Minister’s Questions after “provocative” comments from fellow Scottish Green co-leader Ross Greer, who said earlier this week that he considered the creation of Israel to have been “an act of racism”.
Mr Swinney insisted it was “utterly beyond parody that Malcolm Offord invites me to take action on racism when he leads a party that has brought racism into this parliamentary chamber”.
The First Minister, who met leaders of the Jewish community in Bute House earlier this week, reiterated his belief that there needs to be a two-state solution to the conflict between Palestine and Israel.
When he met members of the Jewish community, he said he had “reassured” them over concerns “for their safety and security in Scotland”.
He insisted: “My duty as First Minister is to make sure every community in our country feels safe and protected, every community.
“I, as First Minister of Scotland, will always defend the safety of every single community in our country.”
Speaking to journalists afterwards, Mr Greer also condemned Nigel Farage’s party, saying: “Reform are a danger to Jewish people in Scotland. Reform are a danger to Muslims in Scotland.
“Reform are a danger to any vulnerable minority community in Scotland. They have no moral authority.”
On Mr Swinney’s comments opposing the Green’s statement on Zionism, Mr Greer said: “John Swinney has every right to take a different position from the Greens on this.
“What I would ask anyone who opposes it to do is explain why they think the state of Israel should be allowed to treat one racial group inferiorly to others. Why they should be allowed to discriminate in law.
“That’s the foundation of the Israeli state: is the discrimination in law against Palestinians who lived and continue to live on that land. It’s for those who want to defend Zionism to explain how it’s not racist to discriminate on the basis of race.”