John Swinney “doesn’t seem to have a clue” about how to win independence, former SNP cabinet secretary Alex Neil has claimed. Neil said the SNP leader should focus on building support for leaving the UK rather than “a debate about the process” at Holyrood.
His comments came after the Scottish Parliament backed a motion calling on Westminster to grant a Section 30 order to allow a second independence referendum. The vote was passed with support from SNP and Green MSPs but was immediately dismissed by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, with Downing Street saying the UK Government does not support independence or another referendum.
Neil urged the SNP to learn from the devolution campaign between 1979 and 1997, which built a “massive majority” for the Scottish Parliament. He insisted a second referendum will not happen “until we get support for independence consistently above 55% and nearer 60%”. He added that the party must “update the case for independence” post-Brexit and spell out why Scots would be better off.
John Swinney defended his strategy, saying Tuesday’s vote showed another referendum is “the will of Parliament”. He vowed to raise the issue with Sir Keir Starmer next month and insisted the SNP has “a very clear strategy” for independence. The First Minister said Westminster “just cannot ignore the democratic wishes of the people of Scotland”.
