John Swinney has declared the SNP is “ready to win big” in the Holyrood election, insisting a majority for his party will deliver the “fresh start” of independence. The Scottish First Minister set his sights on winning an overall majority in the May 7 election, believing such a result would lead to a second referendum on the future of the UK.
Speaking at the campaign launch in Glasgow, Swinney said the SNP will run its “biggest and best campaign” over the next six weeks. He warned that without an SNP majority, there is “always the potential for a grubby, backroom deal between Labour and Reform”, pointing to Reform councillors supporting Labour on Fife Council as evidence.
Swinney argued that an overall SNP majority, as happened in 2011 under Alex Salmond, would “send a message that the Westminster establishment cannot sweep under the carpet”. Successive prime ministers have rejected calls for another independence referendum, but Swinney believes the 2011 precedent could force another vote.
He also criticised the Labour UK Government, accusing it of failing to help people with rising energy bills and taking Scotland’s energy wealth without giving anything back. On foreign policy, he warned Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer against leading the UK into war with Iran alongside the US and Israel, calling it “a war that we in Scotland do not want”.
Swinney made a personal plea to Scots to re-elect him as First Minister, saying: “I have spent my entire adult life in the service of this country. I know how to get things done. I will give every fibre of my being to always standing up for Scotland.”
