Swinney calls for legal referendum if SNP secures majority at Holyrood election
He said the UK economy is 'fundamentally failing to deliver for ordinary people' as well as generating insufficient funding for public services.
The SNP leader called for the May 2026 Holyrood elections to be 'a springboard for Scotland taking charge of our own destiny'.
He said the situation had got worse since the 2014 referendum, and wrote: 'Think what could have been achieved had we not been forced to spend so much time and money trying to mitigate the ongoing damage of Brexit.
First Minister of Scotland John Swinney during First Minister's Questions (Jane Barlow/PA Wire).
'Or the carnage unleashed by Liz Truss's mini-budget. Or the years of austerity, or Westminster cuts like the Winter Fuel Payment.
'We were told we didn't need independence and we just needed a Labour government – but look how that has turned out.'
He wrote that 'independence is the catalyst that will deliver a better future for us all' and that 'with Scotland's energy resources in Scotland's hands, we can reduce bills for consumers and cut costs for businesses'.
Mr Swinney revealed he hoped to deliver an SNP majority similar to 2011 in a bid to 'secure a legal referendum recognised by all' and had submitted a motion to the SNP conference proposing that 'we work to deliver a majority of SNP MSPs in the Scottish Parliament to secure that referendum'.
He pledged to unveil 'radical policies that we know will transform Scotland' in the coming months, and to 'break the logjam and end this frustration that we all feel'.
Mr Swinney added: 'We must be ready to follow the path which we know can lead us to an independent state.'
Scottish Conservative deputy leader Rachael Hamilton said: 'John Swinney is like a broken record. In a bid to silence internal critics of his weak leadership, he has thrown diehard nationalists some more red meat on the one issue they all agree on: independence.
'Ordinary Scots are sick and tired of the SNP's obsession with breaking up the UK.
'The public want John Swinney to focus on fixing the damage his government has done in decimating essential services such as schools and the NHS at the same time as making Scotland the highest taxed part of the UK.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Herald Scotland
an hour ago
- The Herald Scotland
John Swinney opens up on health struggles of wife, Elizabeth
The First Minister was speaking at The Herald's Unspun Live event. Host Brian Taylor asked the SNP leader about Kate Forbes' shock decision to stand down at the next election, and how he balanced family life with high office. Mr Swinney and Ms Quigley have a teenage son, Matthew. READ MORE Asked if he was anxious about taking the job given his wife's illness, he said: 'Yes, I did, and we have both been very open about this. I left office in 2023 because I thought I had asked too much of my family — too many sacrifices. 'I felt my wife needed her husband at her side a bit more. I am not sure she felt that, but I kind of felt I should be a bit closer at hand. 'So when things changed and the gravity of the situation facing my party became clear in late April 2024 we had to talk through what would happen and how we would manage. 'We manage by a lot of help and support from friends locally, and by us just working together to try and make it all work.' Had Humza Yousaf stood down as First Minister a month earlier, Mr Swinney said he would not have been able to take the job as Elizabeth 'was not doing well'. 'And we have just got a period just now, where things are not too good, to be honest. We are struggling a bit at home. 'Normally, I have commitments in the city tomorrow. I would normally stay in Edinburgh — I am going home tonight because I have just got to adjust.' Mr Swinney said he also understood why Ms Forbes plans on standing down. The Deputy First Minister, who has a three-year-old daughter and will be Unspun Live's guest on Thursday, said she did not want to 'miss any more of the precious early years of family life'. 'I totally understand her situation,' he said. 'And she's a superb Deputy First Minister. She's supported me wholeheartedly. She's done a great job, and I am very, very sorry to be losing her, but I understand that it's tough, and she's made her judgement, and she's set out her reasons, and I completely respect that.'
Scotsman
an hour ago
- Scotsman
Why entitled and complacent SNP may not see Kate Forbes' like again
Sign up to our daily newsletter – Regular news stories and round-ups from around Scotland direct to your inbox Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Few of the SNP's current generation had to prove themselves like Kate Forbes, who was asked to deliver the Budget with just a few hours' notice after Finance Secretary Derek Mackay resigned in disgrace. Despite the daunting task ahead, Forbes rose to the occasion. There were more tests to come – within weeks she was Finance Secretary in a pandemic. As Scottish Labour's finance spokesperson at the time, I clashed with her many times in the Chamber. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad But outside of legislative debate, she was warm, funny and no-nonsense, with a mind of her own. So perhaps it's not surprising that Forbes made the decision to step away and put her family first. She has always used her platform to be open about the challenges of motherhood, from the lack of support for postnatal depression to the limited creche hours at Holyrood. But this isn't about the creche. Kate Forbes has announced she is standing down as an MSP at the next election (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell) | Getty Images Politics always a sacrifice No doubt Forbes' job was made harder by the geographic realities of representing a constituency five hours' drive from Edinburgh and being a government minister. I was a government minister and a constituency MSP in the first parliament and my daughter was aged seven – that meant a two-hour drive to go home every night. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Remote voting and working have made that easier but it still is difficult when you have young children. It's a reckoning other politicians have come to, including Gail Ross, a former SNP MSP in the Highlands. Forbes is smart and self-disciplined enough to know that politics was always going to be a sacrifice. But those in power should ask themselves why making that sacrifice for a job in the SNP government is so impossible for a capable and ambitious woman these days. Was it the years of misogynistic online abuse that female politicians suffer from disproportionately, across the political spectrum? Was it the undignified scramble by Forbes' SNP colleagues to disown her, following her decision to be upfront with party members about her faith? Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Or was it the fact that Forbes – who could have launched a leadership bid after being vindicated by Humza Yousaf's government, but accepted a role as deputy leader to John Swinney – seems to have been treated more as a liability than an asset? A rancid government As an opposition politician, it's not for me to delve into the inner battles for the soul of the SNP. But one thing I do know is that Forbes' departure only adds to the whiff of rancidness about this current SNP government. The next future SNP leadership battle is less likely to be a serious debate about ideas and more a question of whether Stephen Flynn's ego will outweigh Mairi McAllan's mediocrity. Neither of them seem willing to challenge the status quo, despite the long queues at A&E departments, the failing ferries and a lazy tax-and-spend policy of chipping away at working people's bank balances without boosting growth. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad I wish Forbes well with the next stage in her life and her future endeavours. But the entitled and complacent party she leaves behind is unlikely to attract such another young rising star. And that's the real reckoning that's needed.
Daily Record
an hour ago
- Daily Record
Donald Trump's bizarre arm gesture after 'nukes on White House roof' claim
Reporters were shouting questions to the American leader at the time. Donald Trump is said to have claimed he wants to install nuclear missiles on the roof of the White House. And seconds after the alleged claim, The President performed an unusual gesture. Reporters had gathered in the White House grounds and shouted questions up at the President, who had been on a tour of the roof of the building during a walkabout. He's planning extensive renovations to the iconic residence and office building. His first change was to pave over the famous Rose Garden - something that has sparked anger among critics. The Mirror reports the next project he has announced is to tack a huge ballroom on the side of the East Wing - designs of which closely resemble the ballroom in his Mar A Lago club in Florida. Today, he responded to questions about what he wanted to build next by apparently shouting " missiles. Nuclear missiles." He pointed to the roof of the White House beneath his feet, then made a stiff-armed gesture, twice. It seems likely that the President was merely miming the launch of a missile. But after the furore around a similar gesture Elon Musk made at a party to celebrate his inauguration, it's likely his critics will note the gesture's similarity to a Nazi salute. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Trump appeared to be taking stock of several areas including the roof of the press briefing room and the Rose Garden. Wearing a suit with a red tie, Trump walked the area with several other people, as someone with them took photographs. Trump may have been surveying ongoing renovation and construction work at the White House. He returned to the presidency with grand ideas for remaking the building, like paving over the Rose Garden and building a massive ballroom. After making observations from the White House roof, Trump walked over to an area above the briefing room, briefly interacting with reporters gathered below. Asked why he was on the roof, Trump said he was 'taking a little walk' and mentioned the 'ballroom on the other side.' Last month, the White House announced construction on a massive, new $200 million ballroom. It is the first structural change to the Executive Mansion itself since the addition of the Truman balcony in 1948 — and work will begin in September. One of the five men with him appeared to be James McCrery, architect for the project. "Just another way to spend my money for this country,' Trump said. 'Anything I do is financed by me."
