Independence is within reach, vows John Swinney
John Swinney is expected to say that an independent Scotland is 'within reach' when he addresses the Scotland 2050 conference in Edinburgh on Tuesday.
In a speech to an audience of representatives from business, politics and civic society, the first minister plans to describe the UK status quo as a broken system that has proved incapable of delivering on the hopes and ambitions of the Scottish people.
His remarks will be seen as an attempt to galvanise his pro-independence base after SNP activists and senior figures vented their frustrations over a 'disastrous' by-election campaign in a pivotal Holyrood seat that the party lost to Scottish Labour.
Swinney is due to set out his vision of an independent Scotland as modern, dynamic and forward-looking, and to call on Scots to make it happen by working for it and voting for it.
'It is only by taking charge of our own destiny, with our own hand on the tiller, that we are better able to ride the waves of change, that we are better able to shape our own future,' the first minister is expected to say.
'I have long believed that Scotland is an afterthought to successive UK governments. Scotland is not on Westminster's radar in the same way, say, as London, the Midlands or the southeast. It holds us back in ways big and small, leaving us waiting and praying, hoping that decisions taken at Westminster are not too damaging.
'We are prey to a broken system and a failing economic model, a system that delivers for a very few at the very top while living standards stagnate and real wages are squeezed for the vast majority.'
With a succession of prime ministers blocking the prospect of a second independence referendum, Swinney will say that Scots have the 'right to choose their destiny'.
A recent poll for The Sunday Times put support for Scottish independence at 54 per cent.
In his speech to the same conference the Scottish Labour leader, Anas Sarwar, is expected to call for an end to the 'same old arguments' that he will say are holding the country back.
'All of us have a stake in the future of our country and all of us want to see a thriving and fairer Scotland in 2050,' he is expected to say. 'But if we want Scotland to thrive by 2050 then we face a choice: are we going to be a Scotland that's having the same old arguments and talking about only what Scotland can't do, or are we going to have a hopeful, outward-looking Scotland that is maximising our potential?
'That is the choice before us and to make sure we thrive by 2050, we need to reject the old ideas and divisions now. That's why I am clear that we need big, bold, meaningful change to deliver a brighter future for Scotland.
'That's why Scottish Labour has bold plans to fix our NHS, renew our public services, fix our schools, end the housing crisis and unlock the potential of our businesses. This is the choice we face: managed decline with the SNP or a new direction and a thriving Scotland with Scottish Labour.'
The Scotland 2050 conference aims bring together leading figures to share ideas, knowledge, and understanding of where the nation should aim to achieve over the next 25 years.
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